Trump Scores Huge Court Victory in Fight to Federalize National Guard Troops

President Donald J. Trump secured a major legal victory this week in his ongoing battle with California Gov. Gavin Newsom over federal authority to command the California National Guard, marking a pivotal win for executive power — and a blow to the left’s efforts to resist federal immigration enforcement.

In a stunning move from a court long viewed as a liberal fortress, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday refused to rehear a prior ruling that sided squarely with President Trump. The decision effectively upholds a June ruling by a three-judge panel that lifted an injunction blocking Trump from taking command of California Guard units to quell violent unrest tied to ICE raids in Los Angeles.

“President Trump is making America safe again,” one supporter posted on X. “Promises made, promises kept.”

The case originated after District Judge Charles Breyer, a Clinton appointee, claimed Trump had acted unconstitutionally by asserting control over the Guard. But the appellate panel — composed of two Trump appointees and one Biden appointee — unanimously overturned Breyer’s order, ruling that the administration was well within its authority to protect federal law enforcement personnel and property amid escalating violence.

The 9th Circuit’s refusal to grant a full-court review, despite several dissents, cements the earlier panel’s opinion as binding precedent — one that could significantly broaden presidential power to deploy state-based Guard units during episodes of domestic unrest. As Newsweek noted, the ruling “could expand executive power over state-controlled troops during domestic unrest.”

The conflict began in June when violent protests erupted in Los Angeles after ICE operations targeting criminal aliens. With federal agents under attack, President Trump issued a federal memorandum invoking his statutory authority to deploy National Guard forces “to protect ICE and other United States Government personnel who are performing Federal functions, including the enforcement of Federal law, and to protect Federal property.”

Governor Newsom swiftly sued, accusing the president of overreach. But with the 9th Circuit’s latest refusal to intervene, his legal challenge is all but dead — unless he takes the fight to the Supreme Court. So far, his office has given no indication of an appeal.

The decision follows a similar Trump victory in Oregon, where a separate 9th Circuit panel ruled 2–1 that the president “was likely to succeed on his claim that he had the authority to federalize the troops based on a determination he was unable to enforce the laws without them,” according to the Associated Press.

Taken together, these rulings represent a decisive legal momentum shift — one that strengthens Trump’s constitutional argument that the federal government has the right, and obligation, to act when states refuse to uphold the law.

Conservatives hailed the decision as a triumph for law and order — and a rebuke to sanctuary-state politics.

“This means Guard units can now roll into sanctuary cities like LA and SF to back federal efforts,” one X user wrote. “The Dems are losing new voters by the bushel!”

With similar challenges still brewing in Illinois and other Democrat-run states, legal experts believe the final word may come from the Supreme Court. Until then, the message from the Trump administration is unmistakable: when states refuse to cooperate in protecting American citizens, Washington will act.