Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem claimed President Donald Trump saved Los Angeles during a stop by “Face the Nation” on Sunday.
Speaking to the hosts of the long-running CBS interview show, Noem credited Trump with the Southern California city’s continued existence, saying it “wouldn’t be standing” if Trump had not sent in the National Guard and Marines against the wishes of state and local leaders in June.
Trump deployed troops to Los Angeles in response to civil unrest over Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids that were also the work of the Trump administration. Protestors took to the streets to impede increased ICE action across the region, leading Trump to wrest control of the state’s National Guard from Gov. Gavin Newsom. On Sunday, Noem said residents of Los Angeles were “thankful” for the action, which is currently the subject of a lawsuit filed by state officials.
“That city would have burned down if left to the devices of the mayor and the governor of that state,” Noem said. “The citizens who live there, the small business owners in downtown LA, they’re thankful that President Trump came in with federal law enforcement officers and helped support keeping those streets open, keep their homes and businesses from burning down, and made sure that law and order was restored.”
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That troop deployment is looking more and more like an opening salvo in an ongoing battle between Trump and Democrat-led cities. The president took control of Washington, D.C.’s police force and deployed the National Guard there earlier this month, in response to an unsubstantiated surge in crime in the capital. He has threatened similar actions in Chicago and New York.
Watch Noem’s comments below via YouTube:
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