Why Trump Is Escalating the Situation in Los Angeles

I’ve been critical of Democrats over the years for constantly shouting “this isn’t normal” every time Trump does something outrageous. And sure, a lot of it isn’t normal. But part of Trump’s appeal is that many people feel like society is broken and has left them behind—so the chaos feels like a form of justice or a chance to reset the system. They’re drawn to the destruction because at least it feels urgent. At least it feels like something is happening.

But what Trump is doing in Los Angeles right now? That’s actually not normal.

A very small number of counter-protesters (agitators? violent assholes? what would you call them?) have caused a lot of trouble amid an overwhelming wave of peaceful protests defending immigrant communities from ICE raids. In fact, multiple reports have shown that areas where violence has occurred represent just 0.2% of all of Los Angeles. And yet, Donald Trump and the GOP are jumping at the chance to blow this up—not to help, not to protect or keep people safe, but because they’re thirsty for this fight. They want the violence. They want the excuse to escalate. They see it as a path to flex authoritarian power.

Why is Trump so fixated on misleading the narrative of L.A.’s overwhelmingly peaceful protests? Because Trump’s had a terrible few weeks. The economy’s flailing. Most Americans believe we’re already in a recession. The stock market is stagnant. He can’t even get the president of China on the phone. His biggest donor just called him out for being on the Epstein List. So what do they do? Deflect. Distract. Intimidate. And stoke fear. Trump and the GOP have fallen back on their same old playbook, and the mainstream media has taken the bait.

BUT there’s something even more dangerous going on. Something more insidious, cruel, and actually NOT normal that we cannot ignore. Trump and his Republican allies, like Stephen Miller, are attempting to normalize the idea that it’s okay for a president to deploy the military into American cities. That’s what’s happening with the 700 Marines sent to L.A. Completely unnecessary. We’ve seen protests, even riots, before in this country—and when local authorities need help, they request it. But they haven’t. That’s not what this is.

Yes, some people blew up Waymo cars. Yes, some people laid hands on officers. And every single one of those people should be held accountable—by a jury of their peers, through due process, like the cop-beaters at the January 6th riot were held accountable—until Trump pardoned them. But those actions are largely contained and they don’t justify deploying the military on civilians, shooting reporters with rubber bullets at point-blank range, or trampling and beating an unarmed civilian with horses and batons. Republicans are masters at flipping the narrative, at inflating isolated incidents into political crises. They’re doing it again, and we cannot let it work.

And let’s be clear: this isn’t just about L.A. ICE raids are happening in Chicago—my city—and in nearly every major American city right now. ICE started raiding meatpacking plants in Omaha, Nebraska, just two days after a Democratic mayor was inaugurated this week. If this kind of escalation becomes routine, it means no place is safe from this kind of federal overreach. It’s creeping into all of our backyards. It’s impacting our neighbors, friends, our brothers and sisters.

There’s new polling showing most Americans don’t support Trump’s actions here—but a big chunk are still undecided. That’s dangerous. That’s why we need to keep talking about this and framing the conversation. We need to take back the narrative and call this out for what it is—government overreach. A harmful, malicious act of deflection to keep Americans in a state of fear and distraction from the corruption that’s happening in Washington. We need to explain, clearly and urgently, that this isn’t normal. We cannot allow troops to be deployed against our fellow citizens.

America has a powerful executive in our system of government. And right now, the man in that office thinks he’s a king. And like a king, he’ll keep testing how far he can go—deploying troops, ordering ICE raids, cracking down on cities that challenge him. If protests grow, if he feels threatened, he’ll double down.

That’s why this moment matters. That’s why we push back. Because if we start to believe this is normal, we’ve already lost.