Newsom summons the posse after Trump’s beatdown

The California governor might still have some fight left

By Joel Rosenblatt

12:47 PM PDT on June 20, 2025

U.S. District Court in San Francisco. Photo: Joel Rosenblatt/Gazetteer SF

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Gavin Newsom might still have some fight left in him after getting thumped by Donald Trump.

The California governor was dealt a serious setback last night when, as expected, a San Francisco-based appeals court ruled Trump has the authority to deploy the National Guard to stomp out protests over Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportations.

But on Friday, a lower district court judge unexpectedly breathed new life into the contest. Judge Charles Breyer previously ruled that Trump overreached when he commandeered the Guard troops and Marines to put down protests in Los Angeles. The appeals court rejected the ruling, handing Trump a big win. The president predictably stretched the ruling as cementing his “core power” to invoke the Guard “all over the United States.”

At U.S. District Court in the Tenderloin Friday, Breyer agreed that he’s bound by the appeals court’s ruling. But he also found that the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals didn’t touch the Posse Comitatus Act, a 147-year-old law prohibiting federal troops from enforcing laws against civilians without authorization, which Newsom also relied on.

“Now the question is, what do I do about the Posse Comitatus Act?” Breyer said. He ordered lawyers representing Newsom and Trump to file briefs with their arguments by Monday. “You’re going to tell me what to do,” Breyer said. “I’m guessing you might disagree.”

“Sorry I’m ruining everybody’s weekend,” Breyer said, as he concluded the hearing.