Tom Homan, the White House border official, suggested Governor Gavin Newsom could be charged for allegedly hindering immigration enforcement.
President Trump has voiced his support for a suggestion made by White House border official Tom Homan to potentially arrest California Governor Gavin Newsom. The arrest would be based on accusations that Newsom is obstructing the administration’s efforts to enforce immigration laws.
Homan had previously stated that Newsom, along with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, might face federal charges for allegedly interfering with immigration agents.
This development marks a significant escalation, following the president’s decision to deploy the National Guard and active-duty Marines to help control the unrest triggered by the arrests of individuals suspected of being undocumented immigrants.
“I would do it if I were Tom. I think it’s great,” Trump stated when asked by a reporter if he supported Homan’s proposal to arrest state officials who interfere with federal immigration raids.
“Gavin likes the publicity but I think it would be a great thing. He’s done a terrible job… Look, I like Gavin Newsom, he’s a nice guy, but he’s grossly incompetent.”
Trump’s comments come as Los Angeles experiences its fourth consecutive day of protests. The protests began Friday after immigration authorities arrested over 40 individuals at a Home Depot parking lot and a clothing factory for allegedly using fraudulent documents. Demonstrations against Trump’s immigration policies quickly turned into looting and violent confrontations with law enforcement.
Similar demonstrations have occurred in cities across the country, including San Francisco, New York, Atlanta, Seattle, Dallas, and Louisville.
Tensions increased after Homan cautioned that officials, including Newsom and Bass, could be arrested if they obstruct federal operations.
“It’s a felony to knowingly harbor and conceal an illegal alien” and to impede law enforcement from “doing their job,” Homan told NBC News on Saturday. He clarified that neither official has “crossed the line yet.”
Newsom responded to Homan’s threat in a Sunday interview with MSNBC, challenging him to “just get it over with” and proceed with the arrest.
“He’s a tough guy. Why doesn’t he do that? He knows where to find me,” Newsom said. “That kind of bloviating is exhausting. So, Tom, arrest me. Let’s go.”
He also criticized the deployment of an additional 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles without his consent, calling it a “serious breach of state sovereignty.”
Newsom, a Democrat and potential candidate for the 2028 presidential election, initiated a federal lawsuit in San Francisco on Monday against Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and the Defense Department. The lawsuit aims to overturn the president’s order to deploy the National Guard.
In a post on X, Newsom stated that Trump “flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalize the National Guard.”