Appeals court says Trump can deploy National Guard—for now

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday temporarily blocked a lower court’s ruling against President Trump’s deployment of the California National Guard. The appeals court said it would hold a hearing on the matter next Tuesday.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom filed the lawsuit against Trump after the president federalized control of the guard last Saturday over the governor’s objections. Trump cited a provision of U.S. law that allows a president to deploy the National Guard in case of a rebellion against federal government authority. The president ordered 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to protect Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and federal property during protests and riots in Los Angeles.

How did Trump and Newsom react to the appeals ruling? The president on Friday celebrated the decision on social media, saying his actions saved Los Angeles. Newsom hadn’t made a statement on the temporary pause by midmorning on Friday. He earlier said he was very gratified by the lower court’s decision against Trump, which he said made clear that the president was subject to Constitutional authority.

What did the now-paused lower court ruling say? Federal judge Charles R. Breyer in a Thursday opinion said Trump’s actions were illegal. The law that Trump cited requires federal deployment of the National Guard to be ordered through state governors. Trump’s original memo ordered Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to coordinate the deployment with Newsom. But Hegseth didn’t notify Newsom until after he’d already given military orders for the deployment, according to court documents. Breyer also said that the unrest in Los Angeles didn’t fit the definition of a rebellion and that Trump’s actions interfered with police power reserved to the states by the Tenth Amendment. The judge ordered Trump to return control of the guard to Newsom.

Dig deeper:Read my report covering governors’ testimony on sanctuary state immigration policies before the House Oversight Committee.