DHS Secretary Kristi Noem blames violent immigration clashes on Gov. Gavin Newsom's 'bad decisions'

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said Sunday that President Trump was forced to deploy National Guard troops to Los Angeles because Gov. Gavin Newsom failed to stop the violent protests.

Mr. Trump became the first president since 1965 to unilaterally activate a state’s National Guard without a request from the state’s governor, according to the Brennan Center for Justice. 

Speaking on CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” Ms. Noem said that Immigration authorities would not have gotten hurt if Mr. Newsom had done his job.

“We wouldn’t have officers with a shattered wrist from bricks being thrown through their vehicles, their vehicles being burned, flags being burned in the street and Molotov cocktails being thrown,” Ms. Noem said. “Governor Newsom has proven that he makes bad decisions.

“The president knows that he makes bad decisions, and that’s why the president chose the safety of this community over waiting for Governor Newsom to get some sanity,” she said.

Mr. Newsom criticized Mr. Trump’s decision, accusing the president of trying to create a political “spectacle.”

The Democrat said local law enforcement had a handle on the protests and warned that sending guard members into the city would further inflame tensions over the administration’s deportation sweeps.

National Guard members started arriving in Los Angeles on Sunday as local officials prepared for another round of protests against Mr. Trump’s immigration raids.

Ms. Noem said Mr. Trump had to act after it took the LAPD hours to respond to a call for backup from Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

Mr. Newsom has been a favorite target of Mr. Trump and conservatives across the nation who have cast him as a radical liberal.