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Protests Spread to Chicago, New York, Denver, Seattle, Atlanta; Legality of National Guard Deployment Debated. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired June 11, 2025 - 06:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: I want to thank you for joining us here on EARLY START. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. CNN THIS MORNING starts right now.

[06:00:33]

ERICA HILL: It is Wednesday, June 11th. Here's what's happening right now on CNN THIS MORNING.

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MAYOR KAREN BASS (D), LOS ANGELES: We reached a tipping point and declared a state of emergency.

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HILL: Mass arrests overnight in Los Angeles. Parts of downtown remain under a curfew at this hour as immigration protests continue.

Plus --

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Since you have refused to leave the roadway, you will be placed under arrest.

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HILL: Tensions flaring across the U.S., the National Guard being deployed to other cities as those protests grow.

And --

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GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D), CALIFORNIA: Democracy is under assault before our eyes.

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HILL: Strong words from California's governor, calling on Americans to stand up to the Trump administration as the state is denied its emergency request to remove the National Guard.

And good morning. Thanks for joining me today. It is 6 a.m. here on the East Coast. A beautiful look at New York City this morning.

I'm Erica Hill, in for Audie Cornish today. Thanks so much for starting your day with me.

A curfew is still in place at this hour in downtown Los Angeles. That came, of course, after five days of unrest and clashes with police.

Mayor Karen Bass announcing that 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew for part of downtown Los Angeles. It should last for several days.

The LAPD announcing mass arrests made overnight.

So, this was the scene before darkness set in in some areas on Tuesday. Nearly 200 people, we're told, have been detained.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're not scared of Trump. We're not scared of ICE, and we're going to stay out here to defend our immigrant community.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On the ground, on the ground.

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HILL: Protests, meantime, are popping up in other areas of the country. Hundreds of New Yorkers demonstrating near a government building in Lower Manhattan. That building houses federal immigration offices and the city's main immigration court.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!

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HILL: Those scenes there from Chicago, thousands marching through downtown in the Windy City to protest the Trump administration's ongoing immigration raids. And it's not just those cities.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fight back! Fight back!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fight back! Fight back!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Fight back! Fight back!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: Demonstrations in Seattle last night; Denver, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The government is going to be as fascist as it can be to, you know, oppress the people it's trying to exclude from this country. And we can't be afraid. Like we have to come out, we have to do something, and we have to help the people around us.

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HILL: New this morning, members of the Texas National Guard also set to be deployed ahead of planned protests in that state this week.

Joining me to discuss, CNN senior national security analyst Juliette Kayyem.

Juliette, always good to see you. So, let's start first with Los Angeles. The mayor, Karen Bass, calling the administration's moves in her city a, quote, "experiment for the rest of the country." Are you seeing evidence of that?

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: I think, well, the evidence is coming from the Trump administration. It has long viewed, certainly, in terms of what you hear from Steve Miller, the deputy chief of staff; Homan, the head of immigration; that -- that they view protests against ICE, against these major raids as sort of a trigger for the kind of military action that we saw in California.

So, yes, I think anyone looking objectively at what's happening in California has to view it as a trial run for future deployments or federalization of the National Guard. L.A. just ended up being very ripe for this -- (AUDIO GAP) -- a variety of reasons.

HILL: You've also noted that that both the president and other members of the administration are using very specific language, touching a bit on what you just said, to protect them in future legal battles.

KAYYEM: Yes.

HILL: How much of that do you see also as an effort to sort of maybe shape the rules or even try to shape the rule of law in their favor?

KAYYEM: Yes, I think it is. I think what you're seeing is the -- by the administration is a standard of description of what's going on in Los Angeles that sort of, you know, is -- is, I would say, exaggerated in terms of taking over the country. California wouldn't exist. Insurrection, incitement, war, all of this language to describe what is essentially, right? It is -- it's unruly, violent rioters, at times, who are -- who are part of a larger, peaceful protest against part of these ICE raids.

[06:05:17]

So, the question isn't, is there bad -- are there bad things going on in Los Angeles? Yes. I mean, yes, you see it. There are burning cars. There's unruliness. There is looting.

But is that supposed to be dealt with, with a federalized military or, in a civil society, with police officers and firefighters and state police? And that is the debate. The -- the White House wants it to be a debate

about immigration. Governor Newsom, as we heard last night in his speech, says this is a debate about power and federalism, and this -- and the military in American society. And I have come to believe that that Newsom is probably right in that regard.

When you look at the street in Los Angeles, yes. I'm from Los Angeles. Yes, it's bad. It's a big city. The city is not falling apart. It is -- it is having a public safety problem.

HILL: Yes. The city is not burning, despite what the president may claim.

KAYYEM: Yes.

HILL: When you look at this, right, and you put this through a historic lens --

KAYYEM: Yes.

HILL: I know you've written about this, too. What do we know? Right? What does history tell us about federalizing the National Guard; sending in troops?

KAYYEM: Yes. I'm so glad you asked that. Because I looked back at the -- at the L.A. riots. And when Governor Wilson then, a Republican, asked for the federalization of the National Guard. So, already you have a distinction. Because, as we know, Governor Newsom did not ask for it. That's what makes this so unique.

And the studies around that deployment are really not in favor of the White House argument that only -- only the federalized National Guard can bring about safety and security.

It turns out that when you federalize the National Guard, they're -- they're not part of a known command structure. They haven't trained with local law enforcement. Communications g o down. Things are actually delayed. They don't speed up.

And you always have the risk of -- with the sort of lack of rules of engagement, that something could go wrong.

I think you're kind of seeing -- I mean, you're kind of seeing that in Los Angeles to the extent Donald Trump says these big numbers, but when -- in terms of what the deployment is. But when you look out in the street, it's a -- it's a couple hundred. They're not prepared for them.

"The San Francisco Chronicle" is saying -- "they" being the Pentagon is not prepared for this deployment, saying that that troop members are sleeping on the -- on the floor outside. They don't even have beds for them.

If you can't house your military, how is it going to be ready for any kind of an effective law enforcement in -- in civil society? Look, we -- a protest is still allowed in this country. Protest, even

against federal action, is allowed. One cannot disrupt federal law enforcement actions, but one can certainly be angry about them, as we're seeing on the street in Los Angeles.

That that would rise to the level of military action is the -- is the historic change by this -- no check. I don't see a check. Right? In other words, when would this stop? And I think that's what Gavin -- Governor Newsom was talking about.

HILL: Juliette Kayyem, always appreciate your insight and your expertise. Thank you.

KAYYEM: Thank you.

HILL: Coming up on CNN THIS MORNING, the blame game. California's governor and President Trump accusing one another of escalating the situation in Los Angeles. So, who's right?

Plus, protecting your private information. Dozens of states now suing 23andMe as the company prepares for a sale.

And, have new laws, actually made it more difficult for Americans to protest peacefully?

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Unfortunately, some people take it up to that level. Not everybody wants that. We don't want that. We just want to make our presence known, that we're here for our equal rights.

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[06:13:29]

HILL: Gavin Newsom offering a blunt warning for his state of California and beyond in response to the Trump administration's deployment of troops to Los Angeles, and also the president's threats to arrest the governor himself.

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NEWSOM: This is about all of us. This is about you. California may be first, but it clearly will not end here. Other states are next. Democracy is next. Democracy is under assault before our eyes. This moment we have feared has arrived.

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HILL: Newsom's remarks coming in the wake of a federal judge denying his request to stop the deployment of National Guard troops to L.A. without his approval. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEWSOM: These are the men and women trained for foreign combat, not domestic law enforcement. We honor their service. We honor their bravery. But we do not want our streets militarized by our own armed forces. Not in L.A., not in California, not anywhere.

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HILL: The situation in California is yet another test for Democratic Party still grappling with how to take on Donald Trump, and specifically, how to address immigration.

Joining me to discuss: Sabrina Rodriguez, national political reporter at "The Washington Post"; Charlie Dent, former Pennsylvania Congressman; and Hyma Moore, former DNC official. It's good to see all of you this morning.

As we look at where things stand in this moment, even the Wall Street Journal referring to Gavin Newsom as the leader of the opposition, I'm curious, as we look at this time, Hyma, do think Newsom is meeting the moment here? Is he the person to push back against Donald Trump effectively?

[06:15:00]

CHARLIE DENT, FORMER PENNSYLVANIA CONGRESSMAN: Is that a question to me?

HILL: No, Charlie, it wasn't. But I'm going to bring you in after.

DENT: OK.

HILL: Hyma, that was for you.

HYMA MOORE, FORMER DNC OFFICIAL: Look, I mean -- look, I think regardless of what people say, he is the governor of California. And California is on the hot seat right now.

So, I think for -- you know, Gavin Newsom, Governor Newsom sees this as an opportunity for him to be the guy who is the anti-Trump, the guy who is the leader of the Democratic Party.

And so, I think for a lot of Democrats, a lot of independents, I think they're sick of hearing the politics of it all. They're sick of hearing who's going to be the leader, who's going to be the voice. I think they want effective leadership. This is real-life stuff. Immigration, particularly in California right now, is real life.

So, I think Democrats, instead of looking for a fighter, they want to have a leader who's going to move things forward, not get into petty fights with the president.

HILL: And yet, Sabrina, we are seeing some of the back and forth, which is not unexpected, of course, in this moment. Senator John Fetterman saying that Democrats are losing the moral high ground, in his view, when they don't condemn violence amid protests in Los Angeles.

Then you have the pushback from Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez, saying she's calling out ICE's, quote, "consistently illegal activity" and accusing the president of invoking a chaotic situation for political gain.

There is never going to be just one voice here. Is it -- is there evidence that Democrats, though, Sabrina, are able to coalesce around a message in this moment?

SABRINA RODRIGUEZ, NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER, "THE WASHINGTON POST": I mean, that's the ongoing struggle for -- for Democrats right now. You know, you see, President Trump. This is a fight that he has been itching to have, you know, since he was on the campaign trail last year.

You know, he has long targeted, you know, Democratic state governors, particularly Gavin Newsom in California, on the issue of immigration and crime. On the campaign trail, those are two that he spoke about very much. And there are two that polling show Democrats have really struggled with in the last year, and especially with the way that Trump talked about it on the campaign trail and really ramped up voters around this message that he was going to bring law and order and this message that he was going to crack down on immigration.

Now, it's sort of been hit with reality. And you see these competing narratives, you know, based off of social media, just looking at the difference between, you know, the commentary that's happening on X while you see what's happening on the more liberal platform, Bluesky.

I mean, there's two very dueling messages about what is happening in Los Angeles right now. And I think Democrats are grappling with the reality that a lot of folks at home are seeing images of disorder, even if these demonstrations are largely peaceful.

How do you talk about it in a way where you focus on, you know, condemning violence; you focus on parts of the immigration message that you disagree with? It just puts Democrats, really, in a defensive position that they've really struggled with.

HILL: And there's also, Charlie, when we look at this, I thought Juliette put it -- I'm not sure if you -- if you all could hear Juliette Kayyem in at the top of the show. But she talked about Gavin Newsom is also talking about this message of immigration. Right. And that's what you're seeing from the protesters. This is about immigration.

Coming from the Trump side, as she sees it, this is a message about power.

How do you square those two, Charlie, in a way that's effective if you are, in fact, looking to push back about the way President Trump is using his power?

DENT: Well, first, we have to distinguish that, you know, these ICE officers who are doing these raids. It's -- it's OK to protest, but ICE is not the enemy.

What these protesters are upset with is the policy that is directing ICE. So, we have to separate this out.

So, when people are throwing objects at ICE officers, they're throwing things at law enforcement, people who are simply doing their jobs. You might not like the job they're doing, but they're doing their jobs.

And I feel like watching all this, that maybe Gavin Newsom should have gotten out in front of this earlier. Why not just mobilize the National Guard?

I agree that bringing in the Marines is overkill. It's wrong. Posse comitatus. It would be a huge issue here. But why not get out in front of this?

Because I think what Donald Trump wants, he wants to create this inflammatory situation. He sees the 2020 riots all over again. And -- and frankly, that actually helped him. He nearly won reelection, in part because of those riots.

And so, I think in many respects, that Trump sees 2020, and he wants to look strong. He wants the Democratic governors and mayors to look weak, that they won't mobilize the National Guard.

And like I said, I think it's OK to mobilize the National Guard. You don't have to necessarily deploy them, but you can have them at the ready and try to preempt Donald Trump. I don't think this is a very smart move on behalf of Gavin Newsom right now.

HILL: When we look at what we're hearing from voices on Capitol Hill, Gavin Newsom also calling out Congress, saying they've abdicated, saying Speaker Johnson has abdicated his duties.

It was interesting. Senator Susan Collins of Maine telling CNN -- I'm quoting her here -- "Active-duty forces are generally not to be involved in domestic law enforcement operations."

Sabrina, is -- is there an expectation, based on some of your sources, folks that you're speaking to, that we will hear from more Republicans weighing in on this?

RODRIGUEZ: Right now, what we've seen from Republicans is -- is largely co-signing what the president is doing because of the images that are coming out of Los Angeles; and them sort of signing onto the messaging that, you know, order needs to be placed in Los Angeles, that it is out of control, that, you know, the mayor, Karen Bass, that Governor Newsom are not, you know, getting things under control. And that's why President Trump had to step in.

[06:20:16]

Some are clearly, you know, avoiding just talking about it. But -- but largely, it doesn't seem that we're going to hear much pushback from Republicans against the president on this front.

HILL: Group chat, stay with me. Lots more to discuss a bit later.

Also, ahead here on CNN THIS MORNING: is a deal on the horizon? The U.S. and China announcing a framework for trade discussions. So, what does it actually change?

Plus, we are live in Los Angeles as we continue to follow the developments. Overnight, multiple arrests made. Parts of the city under a curfew lockdown. What is the situation on the ground?

And a very good morning to our friends in Miami. A beautiful shot there. Sun coming up, the sky brightening. Hope your day is, as well. Stick around.

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[06:25:17]

HILL: It is 24 -- nearly 25 minutes past the hour. Here's five things to know to start your day.

The U.S. and China have a framework for a deal on trade. This coming after two days of talks in London, which the U.S. is calling very productive. The two sides will now take that framework back to Presidents Trump and Xi for their approval and input.

President Trump's tariffs, meantime, can remain in place for now as legal challenges play out. This latest legal twist coming after the administration had appealed a lower court ruling which found Trump overstepped his authority as president in imposing those countrywide tariffs.

Police believe they may be on the trail of Travis Decker. He's the Washington father accused of killing his three daughters. He's also a known survivalist.

Decker has been on the run now for nearly two weeks. Police say they believe they spotted him after receiving a tip, and K-9 crews are now searching the area.

More than two dozen states and the District of Columbia are suing 23andMe, challenging the sale of customers' private information.

All of this coming after the company filed for bankruptcy in March.

And the world's most popular TikToker is leaving the U.S. Khaby Lame was detained by ICE on Friday in Las Vegas for allegedly overstaying his visa. He was then released and left the U.S. of his own accord, according to immigration officials.

Up next, right here on CNN THIS MORNING, as immigration protests spread across the nation, we're taking a look at some of the new protest laws in place that could actually make it more difficult for demonstrators to stay peaceful.

Plus, does Elon Musk now have regrets? Maybe a few.

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[06:30:00]