California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said in a podcast episode Thursday that President Trump did not discuss sending the National Guard to Los Angeles when the two recently spoke to each other before Trump’s announcement.
“He lied, he lied. On my mother and dad’s grave. I don’t mess around, when I say this, he lied. Stone cold liar,” Newsom said on The New York Times’s “The Daily.” Host Michael Barbaro had said the president “claimed you did” talk about the subject when the two spoke earlier Saturday.
Later that evening, Trump said he was sending the National Guard to Los Angeles over the objections of Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.
Trump also backed arresting Newsom earlier this week, resulting in a heated message from the governor on social media about the president’s comments.
“The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor. This is a day I hoped I would never see in America. I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican, this is a line we cannot cross as a nation — this is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism,” Newsom said Monday afternoon on the social platform X.
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.
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