(U.S. Army photo by Capt. Alex Werden) United States Northern Command
On June 12th, 2025, US District Judge Charles Breyer ruled that President Donald Trump unlawfully federalized thousands of members of California’s National Guard and ordered the president to return control of the troops to the state and Governor Gavin Newsom.
The Federal Judge stated “His actions were illegal – both exceeding the scope of his statutory authority and violating the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. He must therefore return control of the California National Guard to the Governor of the State of California forthwith,” which was noted in his 36-page ruling.
Breyer has paused his ruling until 12:00 p.m. on Friday, June 13th, 2025. The Justice Department has filed a notice of appeal.
Attorney General Anthony G. Brown filed an amicus brief with leaders from 21 states supporting California’s request for a court order blocking the president’s unlawful federalization and deployment of that state’s National Guard.
“By federalizing the National Guard over Governor Newsom’s objection, President Trump is not trying to preserve law and order — he is staging political theater by stripping a state of its ability to protect its own people,” said Attorney General Brown. “This blatant abuse of power violates our country’s founding principles, which were established to prevent exactly this kind of overreach. We stand with California — and against the president’s outrageous overreach that endanger the rights and safety of protesters everywhere, including here in Maryland.”
The brief outlines how Trump’s action is wholly inconsistent with our nation’s founding principle that freedom depends on the subordination of the military to civilian authority. The brief states, “By calling forth troops when there is no invasion to repel, no rebellion to suppress, and when state and local law enforcement is fully able to execute the laws, the President flouts the vision of our Founders, undermines the rule of law, and sets a chilling precedent that puts the constitutional rights of Americans in every state at risk.”
The president’s memo federalizing the Guard does not restrict these actions to just Los Angeles, California, or any specific U.S. region. Instead, it is an unlimited claim of presidential authority to deploy the National Guards of any state for the next 60 days. The states have an interest in standing up against this unnecessary and legally unjustified military call-up.
The states also have an interest in ensuring their National Guards are available to perform the essential services they provide the states on an ongoing basis. They provide critical services responding to natural disasters, counter-drug operations, and cybersecurity support, among other daily contributions to public safety. This unlawful federalization pulls volunteer service members away from performing vital services, and states are not in a position to replace them.
The president’s unlawful and unconstitutional use of the military has exacerbated safety issues and threatened constitutionally protected activity under the First Amendment. Every state has an interest in protecting their residents from these threats.
In filing the brief, Attorney General Brown joins the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai‛i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly also joined the brief.
(U.S. Army photo by Capt. Alex Werden) United States Northern Command
