House Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday escalated his support for President Donald Trump's decision to deploy thousands of troops to Los Angeles, endorsing the move as essential to "maintain order" amid mounting protests over immigration enforcement-and taking aim at California Governor Gavin Newsom with inflammatory language.
"President Trump has put his hand on the table and said 'Not on my watch,' and we applaud that so we're standing with him," Johnson said during a press conference. When asked if he agreed with Trump's suggestion that Newsom should be arrested, Johnson responded: "Look, that's not my lane. I'm not going to give you legal analysis on whether Gavin Newsom should be arrested, but he ought to be tarred and feathered."
Newsom responded on X, formerly Twitter: "Good to know we're skipping the arrest and going straight for the 1700's style forms of punishment. A fitting threat given the @GOP want to bring our country back to the 18th Century."
Trump's decision to send 4,000 National Guardsmen and 700 Marines to Los Angeles followed large-scale demonstrations sparked by federal immigration raids. The Marines are tasked with protecting federal buildings and personnel, not engaging with protesters directly, according to the Department of Defense.
Newsom has condemned the deployment as "a blatant abuse of power" and filed a lawsuit against the administration. On Monday, Trump claimed to have spoken with the governor "a day ago" to scold him about his handling of the protests. Newsom denied the exchange, writing: "There was no call. Not even a voicemail."
White House spokesperson Steven Cheung said Trump called Newsom "to tell him to get his ass in gear."
Los Angeles police reported 96 arrests on Monday night for failure to disperse, along with several others for looting, assault with a deadly weapon, and vandalism. No fatalities have been reported, despite Trump's comments warning of "a lot of death and a lot of potential death."
Republican lawmakers rallied behind Trump's show of force. "Trump's doing the right things," said Rep. Ralph Norman. Sen. Kevin Cramer added, "Hopefully their presence will be a deterrent to violence."
Sen. John Kennedy said Trump "didn't have a choice," claiming Newsom and city officials "were going to do nothing. Zero, zilch, nada." He added, "He might have met with the rioters and offered them a cup of hot cocoa and a hug."
Johnson used the moment to plug House Republicans' immigration and tax reform legislation. "Stop working on your rebranding and be a governor," Johnson said of Newsom. "Stand up for the rule of law. And he's not doing that."
The legislation, titled the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," would boost defense and border security spending, extend the 2017 Trump tax cuts, and reduce funding for Medicaid and other social programs. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the bill would add $3 trillion to the deficit over 10 years.
Pressed on comparisons between the LA protests and the January 6 Capitol riot, Johnson said the situations were distinct. "Everybody wants me to relitigate Jan. 6. I'm not going to do that," he said, adding that "the people who broke the law and destroyed property [were] met with the proper consequences."
Newsom has continued to frame the military deployment as a dangerous political escalation. In response to former border czar Tom Homan-who previously suggested arresting Democratic officials who obstruct federal immigration policy-Newsom told MSNBC, He "knows where to find me."
