California Lt. Governor says Los Angeles riots are 'generated by Donald Trump'

California Lieutenant Gov. Eleni Kounalakis insisted the ongoing anti-ICE riots happening in Los Angeles on Sunday were a direct result of President Donald Trump’s actions.

Riots broke out in Los Angeles on Friday and Saturday as immigration officials carried out raids to remove individuals illegally residing in the city. On Saturday, Trump deployed the National Guard to quell the violence, though California Gov. Gavin Newsom accused the president of simply wanting a "spectacle."

Kounalakis, a Democrat, echoed Newsom’s sentiment on "CNN Newsroom" by suggesting the demonstrations were peaceful and manageable before Trump was involved.

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California Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis described the state of affairs in Los Angeles on CNN as anti-ICE riots continued for the third day in a row. (Screenshot/CNN)

"What started yesterday was about 400 protesters in two separate locations. 400 altogether, and local law enforcement was absolutely capable of managing those kinds of protests," Kounalakis said. "So bringing in the National Guard, threatening now to bring in the Marines, this is a crisis that is being ginned up and generated by Donald Trump for more of his political theater. It‘s deeply concerning that he is attempting to rile people up in this way." 

Kounalakis added that the "biggest concern" was the ongoing raids conducted by the Trump administration in major cities like Los Angeles. She claimed people who are only being "profiled" as undocumented immigrants were "being swept up in them."

"It is not what I think most people thought when the president said that he was going to go after violent criminals, going into kitchens and rounding people up and asking for their papers, detaining them. That's really the precursor to it all."

She continued, "But even as people are voicing their disagreement with that, calling in the National Guard in the way that he did was not necessary. Absolutely overkill and seems to now be escalating the problem because of Donald Trump‘s actions."

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Police officers stand amid tear gas during a protest against federal immigration sweeps in downtown Los Angeles, California, U.S. June 8, 2025. REUTERS/Daniel Cole (REUTERS/Daniel Cole)

Kounalakis also revealed a lawsuit will likely be filed against the Trump administration for the deployment.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the president sending in the National Guard in an X post on Monday, saying, "Gavin Newsom did nothing as violent riots erupted in Los Angeles for days." She went on to say that the governor "was too weak to protect the city."

The riots entered their third day in California on Sunday, forcing officials to shut down the 101 Freeway.

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said 500 Marines are on a "prepared to deploy" status and 2,000 California Army National Guard soldiers have been placed under federal command and control. There are currently 300 members of the California Army National Guard’s combat team deployed in several locations.