President Donald Trump advocated for California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s arrest even as another administration official insisted Monday morning there’d been no discussion of his arrest.
“I would do it, if I were Tom,” Trump told reporters. “Gavin likes the publicity, but I think it would be a great thing.”
Trump’s comments came as White House border czar Tom Homan told “Fox & Friends” that there had been “no discussion about arresting Newsom.”
Newsom quickly responded on X, posting that “The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor,” and “I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican this is a line we cannot cross as a nation — this is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism.”
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Thousands of protesters took to the streets in Los Angeles over the weekend, sparked by immigration raids on Friday and more broadly rallying against Trump’s immigration crackdown. Trump deployed the National Guard on Sunday, which intensified riots; Newsom has said he will sue the administration for activating the Guard and has said Trump created the conditions for the protests to happen.
Homan has previously suggested arresting people who obstruct immigration enforcement. NBC News reported Homan didn’t rule out Newsom or LA mayor Karen Bass when asked explicitly over the weekend.
“I’ll say it about anybody,” Homan said. “You cross that line, it’s a felony to knowingly harbor and conceal an illegal alien. It’s a felony to impede law enforcement doing their job.”
In an appearance on MSNBC on Sunday, Newsom responded to Homan, saying, “He knows where to find me.”
“That kind of bloviating is exhausting. So, Tom, arrest me. Let’s go,” Newsom said.
“Trump’s border czar is threatening to arrest me for speaking out. Come and get me, tough guy. I don’t give a damn. It won’t stop me from standing up for California,” Newsom also posted on X Sunday night.
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Nuha Dolby is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.
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