Their rivalry dates back many years. Now, Trump says Newsom should be arrested and the California governor is suing the federal government.
National Guard and protesters clash in an ice attack
Hundreds of demonstrators fought against the National Guard and local governments as ice protests escalated.
Protesters clash with authorities on the streets of Los Angeles. The US Marines and National Guard were deployed. Litigation. The president has proposed that domestic governors should be arrested.
Spring 2025 will be one of Donald Trump’s biggest showdowns in his second term, with the president and California Gov. Gavin Newsom engaging in a political heavyweight fight.
Conflicts have great significance. Newsom warns that Trump is acting like a “dictator” by deploying California State Guard troops without the governor’s consent, and the president argues that he is trying to maintain peace amid growing unease over immigration policy, and Democratic leaders should be placed behind bars if they thwart the federal government.
“It’s a high stakes game,” said David McCuan, a political science professor at Sonoma State University.
At the heart of the fight are two men who may be politically opposed, but share the energy of the same leadman, creating the Hollywood conflict set in the entertainment capital of the world. Trump Newsom’s relationship – long and often criticised, but less recently, it has now shifted to a new level of public conflict that puts the nation on an extreme level.
After Tom Homan from Trump’s border border area said anyone would be arrested, including Newsom, who blocks immigrant staff, Newsom dared to chase Homan. Trump also said, “I’m going to do it… I think it’s great,” after returning to the White House on June 9th from the Washington, D.C. weekend.
On the same day, the California Attorney General said he was coordinating with Newsom for a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles for the first time since the 1960s, when the president deployed state security guards without the governor’s approval.
2028 is the factor for Trump and Newsom in 2025
Potential political fallouts could also be important as they could spiral out of control amid the situation in the country’s most populous nation, and concerns that it is the second largest city.
Trump is determined to fulfill his promise of a massive deportation campaign, and he ratchets up his stakes on measures that are testing his legal authority. He also pledged the president of “Law and Order” and seized immigration protests taking place across the country to issue a statement.
Meanwhile, Newsom is widely seen as the Democratic presidential candidate for 2028, trying to find his foothold on the national stage, with him positioning himself in his relationship with Trump. Arresting Newsom could in fact boost his democratic authenticity, McCuan said he made him a “political star” for the Democratic party.
“The Democrats are looking for who will be the next fighter,” said Matt Letheny, a professor of Long Beach political science at California State University.
Trump’s four indictments and arrests during the 2024 campaign meant he raised funds and supported him around him. Recalling how he used criminal cases to run the Victory White House, the president dismissed the idea that potential arrests accompanying Newsom’s fight-mugshot could boost governors.
“I don’t think I’ll help him. I think it’s actually very bad for him,” Trump told reporters at an event at the White House.
L.A. wildfires and airport embrace
For years, Trump and Newsom have been rebutting California’s response to the most recent devastating wildfires around Los Angeles. Media reports say Trump has frequently referred to as “news come” and threatened to withhold federal wildfire aid, and recently his administration has cut the state’s federal funding more widely. The governor portrayed the president as a “bully.”
But there were times of friendly moments.
When Trump flew to California shortly after his inauguration, Newsom met him at the airport to tour the wildfire damage, and they accepted. Newsmu said Trump was “there for us during Covid,” and Trump has pledged to help the nation recover from the fire.
The newspaper, which has become politically prominent as the liberal mayor of San Francisco and as the state’s lieutenant governor, has tried to reposition itself since Trump’s 2024 election. The 57-year-old Democrat has launched a podcast featuring interviews with influential MAGA figures. In a conversation with conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Newsom said it was “deeply unfair” to allow trans athletes in girls and women’s sports.
Newsom and Trump spoke on the phone on June 7th after protests broke out outside the Los Angeles Immigration Center. The governor calls Trump a “liar” while describing it as “a very decent conversation” in an interview with MSNBC.
“He’s never raised the National Guard,” Newsom said. “He’s a stone liar. He said he did that.”
On June 9th, even if he defeated Newsom’s reaction to the protest, Trump said at an event at the White House that “I like him and I’ve always been with him.”
The relationship could ultimately help eliminate the situation, McCuan said.
“The good news is that the governor and the president talk to each other…it allows the situation to be tempered,” he said.
However, Leseny warned that both men could struggle to retreat. Trump has yet to consolidate his policies into law and may view the Los Angeles conflict as a way to win political victory, he said, but the fight could be a big part of the newspaper’s presidential election.
“Both are desperate,” Lesenny said.
Contribution: Joey Garrison
