A joint statement from 22 Democratic governors Sunday condemned US President Donald Trump's decision to deploy the National Guard to Los Angeles, according to CNN.

"President Trump's move to deploy California's National Guard is an alarming abuse of power," the statement read.

"Governors are the Commanders in Chief of their National Guard and the federal government activating them in their own borders without consulting or working with a state's governor is ineffective and dangerous."

The statement also decried threats to send Marines to the area, which Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said Saturday was a possibility.

Notable signatories include New York Governor Kathy Hochul, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee.

More than 1,000 protesters clashed and faced off with National Guard troops in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday during the latest demonstrations against immigration raids that swept across California over the weekend, Xinhua News Agency reported. 

No president has deployed the National Guard domestically without a governor's request since 1965, CNN reported.

California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, is not a signatory of the statement, but it concludes by commending his urging that protests be peaceful, CNN noted. 

On Monday, Newsom used harsh words to criticize the US president on X for inciting and provoking violence. The California Governor on Sunday formally requested that the Trump administration withdraw the National Guard from Los Angeles County, where troops are responding to immigration raid protests, according to Axios. 

Global Times