[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 99 (Tuesday, June 10, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Page S3294]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                          Los Angeles Protests

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, from the moment Donald Trump entered the 
public sphere, he has thrived on division and diversion. He fans the 
flames of chaos, then pretends to be the firefighter--always looking 
for someone else to blame for the infernos he helps ignite--all in an 
attempt to divert Americans away from his many failures.
  Now Donald Trump, cornered by his own failures from pushing a 
heartless bill that would rip healthcare away from 16 million Americans 
and raise costs from his reckless tariffs war, to waging war with Elon 
Musk--Trump is desperately seeking a distraction. His order to deploy 
the National Guard and Marines--our own troops on Americans--is not 
just outrageous and provocative; it is a dangerous authoritarian 
overreach that threatens the very fabric of our democracy. This isn't 
leadership; it is provocation.
  To be very clear, violent protest is not the answer for achieving the 
work of justice--full stop. Protests must remain peaceful, and law and 
order must be maintained, but let me emphasize: Deploying federalized 
troops without a State's consent hasn't happened in over 60 years, and 
when it did, it was to protect civil rights heroes who were marching 
for justice in Selma, AL. That moment was about progress. This one is 
about power and intimidation.
  We must all stand up and say loud and clear: America will not be 
bullied into submission by a President who confuses strength with force 
and democracy with domination.
  Americans don't deserve more fear, more division, more chaos. The 
President is using the military not to protect the people but to 
silence them. He is playing politics with the lives of our troops and 
the safety of our citizens. It is shameful. It is unlawful. It is 
deeply un-American. Once again, President Trump is choosing chaos over 
competence and division over democracy.
  We must all stand up and say loud and clear: America will not be 
bullied into submission by a President who confuses strength with force 
and democracy with domination.
  The only consequence of Donald Trump's order of sending troops to Los 
Angeles is chaos, and Americans don't like it. Instead of deescalating, 
Donald Trump is pouring fuel into a fire, hoping for an explosion to 
distract from what he is really doing. President Trump should call back 
the National Guard and the Marines immediately and leave the work of 
law enforcement to the Governor and the mayor who are more than capable 
of keeping order without escalation.