Vance says National Guard still "necessary" in L.A., calls Sen. Alex Padilla "José Padilla"
Vance is the highest-ranking Trump administration official to visit the Los Angeles area since protests broke out in the nation's second-largest city over Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. He gave brief remarks after touring a multi-agency Federal Joint Operations Center and a federal mobile command center, and meeting with leadership and Marines on the ground.
President Trump federalized thousands of troops from the California National Guard in response to the Los Angeles-area protests and ordered about 700 Marines to be deployed to protect federal property. The president has directed federal immigration authorities to prioritize deporting individuals from Democratic-run cities, including Los Angeles, and a series of ICE operations in L.A. sparked the protests earlier this month.
The deployments drew a lawsuit from California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who argued the presence of military forces could inflame the situation. Late Thursday, a federal appeals court allowed the president to keep control of the National Guard troops he deployed to the Los Angeles region, halting a ruling from a lower court judge who said the president acted illegally when he activated the troops over objections from Newsom. The protests have waned, but the troops remain.
In remarks to reporters on Friday, Vance said the situation has "gotten a lot better," but the Marines and National Guard forces are still "very much a necessary part of what's going on here," arguing the protests could "flare back up."
The vice president also alleged that Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass had "egged on" violence during the protests. The administration has accused state and local officials of failing to protect federal immigration agents from threats and interference from protesters. Local authorities have pushed back, arguing federal authorities are responsible for the chaos.
"I would absolutely say that Gavin Newsom is endangering law enforcement," Vance said.
Vance suggested the administration is willing to use the Guard in other places, but that it hopes not to.
"If you enforce your own laws and if you protect federal law enforcement, we're not going to send in the National Guard because it's unnecessary," the vice president said.
In a news conference Friday night, L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said Vance was "spewing lies and utter nonsense in an attempt to promote division and conflict in our city."
Vance calls Sen. Alex Padilla "José Padilla"
At one point, Vance referred to Sen. Alex Padilla, a California Democrat, as "José Padilla."
"I was hoping José Padilla would be here to ask a question, but unfortunately, I guess he decided not to show up because there wasn't the theater," Vance said.
The senator made news last week after he was forcibly removed from a press conference hosted by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, an incident Vance called "pure political theater."
"Mr. vice president, how dare you disrespect our senator," Bass said in her news conference. "You don't know his name? But yet you served with him before you were vice president, and you continue to serve with him today. Because last time I checked, the vice president of the United States is the president of the Senate. You serve with him today, but how dare you disrespect him and call him José. But I guess he just looked like anybody to you."
Newsom said Friday in a post on X that mixing up Padilla's name was "not an accident," noting that Vance and Padilla served in the Senate together.
"It was very generous of the Vice President to take time out of his closed-door fundraiser to stage a photo op in front of a fire truck — where he 'mistakenly' called a Latino U.S. Senator 'Jose,'" Newsom's office said in a statement.
A spokesperson for the senator told CBS News the remark was an "unserious comment from an unserious administration."
"As a former colleague of Senator Padilla, the Vice President knows better. He should be more focused on demilitarizing our city than taking cheap shots," the spokesperson added.
"He must have mixed up two people who have broken the law," Vance spokesperson Taylor Van Kirk told CBS News.
One of the more high-profile José Padillas was sentenced to prison on terrorism and conspiracy charges over a decade ago, on allegations that he worked with al-Qaeda.
On Thursday, federal agents were seen outside the Los Angeles Dodgers ballpark, after the team said it blocked immigration authorities from entering. Fans protested, and the Department of Homeland Security said Customs and Border Patrol vehicles "were in the stadium parking lot very briefly, unrelated to any operation or enforcement."
Federal immigration officers have stepped up enforcement efforts, with White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller saying ICE officers are aiming for at least 3,000 arrests a day. So far, the number of arrests has failed to reach that target, with a daily average of about 1,200 arrests in the month of June as of earlier this week.
Back in Washington, Mr. Trump is handling international matters, particularly the Israel-Iran conflict. In a statement on Thursday, the president said he will decide whether the U.S. will join Israel in its strikes in the next two weeks. The president traveled to Bedminster, New Jersey, for a fundraising dinner Friday night after meetings with his national security team at the White House.
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