Sen. Ted Cruz and Gov. Gavin Newsom traded barbs online after Newsom compared the deployment of federal troops and federalized National Guard forces in Los Angeles during 2025 immigration-related protests to Nazi Germany. Cruz argued the federalization of state Guard units has historical precedents, including during the 1957 Little Rock crisis; Newsom responded by citing his dyslexia.
In June 2025, as protests erupted in Los Angeles over the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operations, the federal government deployed National Guard troops and active-duty Marines to the city, a move opposed by California officials and later challenged in court.
Newsom, criticizing the deployment, described images of “masked men” and “secret police,” and compared the scenes to Germany. In remarks cited by The Daily Wire, he said: “I want to remember all those images of masked men, the secret police, something familiar in Germany,” and later added that Los Angeles—the second-largest city in the United States—saw “4,000 National Guard federalized” and “700 active duty Marines” sent in, calling it “militarizing the streets of my city.”
On his “Verdict” podcast, Cruz responded by calling Newsom “historically illiterate,” arguing that federalizing National Guard units is not unprecedented. Cruz pointed to the civil-rights era, when federal authorities used troops to enforce court-ordered desegregation against resistance by Southern officials, and he compared that history to current fights over federal law enforcement.
Newsom then replied on X on February 16, 2026, saying Cruz’s use of “illiterate” was offensive given Newsom’s dyslexia: “Ted Cruz calling a dyslexic person illiterate is a new low, even for him.”
Cruz answered on X on February 17, 2026, saying he meant Newsom lacked historical knowledge, not reading ability, and he cited President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s actions during the Little Rock crisis. Eisenhower’s Executive Order 10730—issued on September 23, 1957—placed the Arkansas National Guard under federal control and authorized the use of federal troops, including soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division, to enforce desegregation at Little Rock Central High School.
The dispute unfolded against a broader debate over the scope of federal authority to deploy troops domestically, particularly in connection with immigration enforcement and protest response in major U.S. cities.
