- Gov. Spencer Cox said he believes it was constitutional for Trump to deploy National Guard to L.A.
- But the governor said he wishes presidents didn't have authority to federalize state troops.
- Cox warned Utah protesters that if weekend demonstrations turn violent they will be arrested.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s federalization of National Guard troops to quell violent Los Angeles riots is a constitutional use of presidential authority.
During the Biden administration, Cox spearheaded gubernatorial opposition to perceived executive overreach regarding the National Guard. Despite his preference for states’ rights, Cox said Trump had the obligation to get involved as protests escalated into chaos.
“When things get out of control, somebody has to stop it,” Cox said during his monthly PBS broadcast. “I’ve seen the videos. The damage that is being done is unconscionable, and we just can’t have that in a civil society.”
Cox said he is “grateful” Trump is “willing to act” as demonstrators have protested federal deportation policies by burning self-driving cars, vandalizing federal buildings, looting retail stores and lobbing rocks at law enforcement officers.
But Cox was hesitant to fully endorse Trump’s approach, which included the deployment of 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines in a stated effort to protect federal buildings and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
As local California leaders have spoken out against Trump’s use of the military, Cox said he wished that the Constitution and federal law did not enable the president to call up National Guard troops from states.
“I do think it is legal for the president to do that‚" Cox said. “I wish the Constitution didn’t say that, and I wish that the federal law doesn’t say that, but it does say that and so that always is an option.”
Will protests come to Utah?
California officials alleged that Trump’s deployment of troops led to the escalation of the protests. California lawmakers asked a federal judge to restrict Trump’s use of federal troops, arguing that it was illegal for Trump to bypass Gov. Gavin Newsom in sending them.
Cox contrasted Utah’s approach to violent protests with that of California’s leadership.
He also had a warning for the nationwide “No Kings” protests organized by the 50501 Movement that is scheduled to come to Utah on Saturday.
“I want Utah to be the best place in the United States to protest,” Cox said. “I also want Utah to be the worst possible place to riot.”
“The minute you start to spray paint the Capitol, the second you implement violence or property destruction, we will arrest you, and we will hold you accountable.”
Cox said Utah law enforcement will be “overprepared” for any incidents this weekend and that if anyone in Utah wants to engage in violent protests they can “go to California.”
ICE raids
The Los Angeles protests reportedly erupted after federal agents conducted a raid in the city’s garment district, looking for workers suspected of being in the country illegally.
This could become a more common feature of the Trump presidency as his administration seeks to increase daily ICE arrests from less than 1,000 a day to a daily quota of 3,000.
On Friday, as many as 100 individuals were arrested by immigration officials at Glenn Valley Foods in Omaha, Nebraska, in what immigration officials called the largest Nebraska enforcement operation since Trump took office.
Cox said he typically is not notified of local law enforcement raids and would not expect to be notified of a raid by federal authorities.
“We’ve got good people out there that wear uniforms, both local, state and federal, and trust them to do their jobs,” Cox said.
Cox said the state’s willingness to aid the Trump administration in conducting deportations of those in the country illegally does not violate the Utah Compact on Immigration from 2015.
Over a decade ago, hundreds of government officials, business leaders and faith representatives signed a statement putting forward Utah’s approach to immigration with a commitment to maintaining the rule of law, integrating migrants into the economy and avoiding the separation of families.
“Too many people only read the end of the compact, not the beginning of the compact, that we also support law enforcement and support actually obeying and defending the laws that exist,” Cox said.