The LA riots could destroy Donald Trump’s presidency
David Kaufman
Mon, June 9, 2025 at 2:33 AM CDT
An activist holds aloft a Mexican flag and an effigy of Donald Trump’s head as cars burn during protests sparked by immigration raids in Los Angeles - CAROLINE BREHMAN/EPA-EFE/ShutterstockWe’re only a few days into the anti-riot crackdowns in Los Angeles by various armed government enforcers and already there are lives at stake.
No, not the lives of the hundreds of protesters out on the streets across America’s second-largest city, but the political lives – or at least longevity – of some of the highest-profile personalities to emerge during president Trump’s second turn in the White House.
There’s Los Angeles mayor, Karen Bass, already weakened by her disastrous performance during this year’s wildfire chaos and now even more compromised by the optics of incompetence as her city erupts yet again. And, of course, California governor Gavin Newsom, whose unbridled presidential ambitions could take a fatal hit if his state does not return to law and order – and fast.
The riots are a test for Kristi Noem, the US secretary of Homeland Security, aka “ICE Barbie” – who made waves when she toured a Salvadoran mega prison in March sporting a $50,000 Rolex. Her hardline anti-migrant stance has made her a close Trump confidant – but can it stand up to the ire of the masses she helped mobilise by her often cruel migrant deportation sprees?
But the most consequential political life at stake here is that of Donald Trump himself – whose ultra-adversarial, bully-like tactics have yet to be tested as they are right now in California.
There has never been anything quite like the anti-ICE protests during either of Trump’s terms. The Women’s Marches and BLM protests of his first administration may have, at times, turned rowdy and chaotic – but their violence was never directed at the White House like it is right now. This moment is different. Very different.
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https://www.yahoo.com/news/la-riots-could-destroy-donald-073325154.html
