California Is Standing Up to Trump’s Incoming Administration—Here’s What You Need to Know
California is taking a stand against President-elect Donald Trump before the new administration has started. In an effort to protect the state and its residents, Governor Gavin Newsom announced a $50 million agreement to strengthen local and state legal defense against the incoming administration. Here’s why this matters.
California is getting ready for legal battles against the incoming Trump administration before it even begins
California is getting ready to legally challenge the incoming Trump administration. In a first-ever move, the Golden State has agreed to put aside $50 million to “Trump-proof” the state in the coming years. The historic deal, crafted to protect the rights of Californians, is a two-fold funding.
Gov. Newsom proposed the first $25 million shortly after President-elect Trump’s victory in November 2024. The money has been earmarked for California’s Department of Justice to fund litigation against the incoming Trump administration’s agenda. In a virtual address in November 2024, Gov. Newsom stood firm against President-elect Trump and his proposed policies.
“We are not going to shrink and are not going fall prey,” Gov. Newsom said during the address. He added his government would “have their back.” “We are going to have your back, even if you do not live in the state of California, we are going to have your back. We are going assert ourselves.”
The State Senate leaders proposed the second $25 million to help protect California’s immigrant and undocumented communities. The money will help undocumented immigrants against deportation, detention, and wage theft. It will also bolster immigrant support centers and legal nonprofits working for immigration rights.
President-elect Trump has never shied away from threatening California
In the most recent show of disdain for California, President-elect Trump openly discussed exploiting the pain of Americans for political gain by threatening to withhold aid for the Los Angeles fires unless he gets what he wants. He has proposed attaching federal assistance to a reconciliation bill to help American citizens after a natural disaster.
“I’d like to see one bill. And because of Los Angeles, you’d think that’s a Democrat thing. They want that money going so fast. Because of Los Angeles, I think the concept of one, big, beautiful bill has been helped greatly,” Trump said while on the notoriously right-wing extremist “The Dan Boningo Show.” “If you add Los Angeles into it, then you can really do one, big, beautiful bill, because, frankly, they want that so badly. They want the money to go out there so badly. And I don’t think we should do a bill until Los Angeles is included. And when Los Angeles is included, we get everything we want.”
Following this admission, it is not out of the realm of possibility that California will be a big focus of the incoming Trump administration. California municipalities, including LA, have also been working to protect their residents. The city council for the City of Angels recently voted unanimously to pass a sanctuary city ordinance.
The sanctuary city ordinance “permanently enshrines sanctuary policies into municipal law and prohibits the use of City resources, including property and personnel, from being utilized for immigration enforcement or to cooperate with federal immigration agents engaged in immigration enforcement,” according to a statement from city councilwoman Nithya Raman.
