California Governor Gavin Newsom said he will deploy more highway patrol officers across several major areas across the state to suppress crime amid threats of National Guard intervention by Trump.
Trump, Newsom clash on crime crackdowns in major cities
President Donald Trump and California Gov. Gavin Newsom continue to clash on their approach to reducing crime in some of the country’s largest cities.
Fox – Fox 29
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom is deploying more California Highway Patrol officers to major areas across the state to combat crime with local police.
- Newsom said the deployment expands existing partnerships between state and local law enforcement, not a response to President Trump’s threats to send National Guard troops into Democratic-led cities.
- Newsom has criticized Trump’s actions, calling them authoritarian and hypocritical.
California Governor Gavin Newsom said he will deploy more highway patrol officers in several major cities across the state to suppress crime amid threats of National Guard intervention by President Trump.
Newsom announced on Aug. 28 that CHP “crime suppression” teams will partner with law enforcement in six cities and regions in California, including the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento and parts of the Central Valley and Inland Empire.
In some cases, the state’s strategy of using state officers is an extension of its current partnerships for years with cities such as San Francisco, Oakland and Bakersfield, to assist with cracking down on drug dealing, carjacking, armed robbery and retail theft.
Newsom has called the partnerships successful, adding that the state has spent $1.7 billion on the initiatives, resulting in more than 9,000 arrests statewide since 2019.
“(We’re) building on the success of this proven program,” Newsom said during a briefing with reporters in Sacramento on Aug. 28. “The issue of reduction of crime is an important issue. But I want to make this crystal clear: it’s never good enough. ‘Good enough’ never is. Success is not a place or a definition. Success is a direction.”
Newsom’s announcement comes as President Donald Trump considers sending the National Guard to major cities across the country, including Chicago, to combat crime. The president has also threatened to send troops to California cities, including Oakland and San Francisco.
Earlier this month, Trump sent troops to Washington, DC. While Mayor Muriel Bowser said the federal deployment has helped reduce crime, she said the constant presence of the troops and immigration agents is causing fear and anxiety for residents.
Newsom denied that his announcement about the highway patrol partnership with local police was in response to Trump’s actions, reiterating that he was building on public safety efforts since his governorship began in 2019, which accelerated in 2023.
“When the state and local communities work together strategically, public safety improves,” Newsom said. “While the Trump Administration undermines cities, California is partnering with them – and delivering real results. With these new deployments, we’re doubling down on these partnerships to build on progress and keep driving crime down.”
White House spokeswoman Liz Huston said in a statement to USA TODAY on Aug. 29 that “With fierce competition from his Democrat counterparts, Gavin Newsom remains one of the worst governors in America. California deserves much better than having this weak clown in charge.”
Newsom, CHP, say the communities want to see more crime reduction
Newsom and CHP Commissioner Sean Duryee said operations will be unannounced, but officials will act based on data-driven intelligence about crime in certain areas across the state. The teams will have between 12 and 15 officers, Duryee said.
“These crime suppression teams will provide critical support to our local partners by focusing on crime where it happens most. By combining resources, intelligence and personnel, we can better disrupt criminal activity and strengthen the safety and security of communities across California,” Duryee said.
Duryee said the partnerships come at the communities’ request, as violent and property crimes were reported down across the state last year.
Newsom agreed.
“We’re not reacting to, responding to anything. Quite the contrary. With one caveat: the community wants to see more. And, we are trying to be responsive to the people we serve,” Newsom said. “As it relates to the president in particular, he’s doing things to people, not with people. He’s de facto militarizing American cities.”
Newsom said if Trump wanted to invest in crime suppression, the president would look into states such as Louisiana, a Republican-led state, Newsom said, that has nearly four times the murder rate of California. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data confirms that as the difference in murder rates for 2023.
“The carnage in Louisiana is well defined,” said Newsom, who added that Republican-governed state Mississippi also has a high per capita murder rate. “The murder rate is out of control there. If the president is sincere about the issue of crime and violence, there’s no question in my mind, he will likely be sending the troops to Louisiana and Mississippi to address the unconscionable wave of violence there.”
Newsom is giving Trump and other Republicans a taste of their own “MAGA-messaging style,” said John Delatorre, a psychologist based in San Antonio, Texas, who works on criminal cases.
“I think Newsom is the type of figurehead who’s most capable of delivering that type of messaging that could resonate broadly,” Delatorre said. “MAGA messengers are so gifted at times of misinterpreting or outright lying about what they want others to believe is true. In this case, Newsom is definitely trying to show where the real crimes occur, instead of using fearmongering.”Â
In response to Newsom’s statement, Republican Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy told Fox News Channel on Aug. 29 he would welcome the federal assistance. Kennedy contended that Newsom was expanding his program due to Trump’s threats about sending the Guard to California cities, including Oakland and San Francisco.
“I welcome help. I welcome federal help. I welcome more state help. I welcome local help,” Kennedy told Fox News. “Come on down.”
Newsom said he’s ‘putting up a mirror’ to Trump’s actions
During his Aug. 28 news briefing, Newsom was asked repeatedly if the statewide crime suppression team announcement was related to Trump threatening to send troops into mostly Democratic-led U.S. cities.
The governor said it was not about the “nationalization or militarization of the Guard.” Newsom said he was “putting a mirror up” to Trump’s actions.
“But also acknowledge that this country needs to wake up to what’s going on in, not just the authoritarian tendencies, but the authoritarian actions, by this president,” Newsom said. “This cannot be normalized. And, yes, so I’m highlighting some just blatant hypocrisy. Yes. We’re putting a mirror up to the lunacy that is Trump’s tweets and his grift.”
