While many Americans expressed outrage over scenes of federal immigration agents and local police being attacked by angry protesters in Los Angeles, most of the Democrats representing the Delaware Valley shrugged off the story with a “no comment” on Monday.
For three days, anti-ICE protesters set cars ablaze, blocked roads, and bashed cop cars with concrete in response to immigration enforcement actions in the area. And for three days, Americans, including here in Pennsylvania, watched the images on cable news and social media—videos of protesters waving Mexican flags in front of flaming vehicles.
President Donald Trump responded to the rioting by sending in the California National Guard, over the objections of Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). The latter used Philadelphia’s sports celebrations to mock the idea that there were major riots in his city.
“Are you going to send in the Marines the next time the Philadelphia Eagles win, too?” Newsom’s press office tweeted as the unrest continued.
On Monday, Trump responded by doing just that, announcing some 700 Marines will be dispatched to protect federal property and employees in Los Angeles. According to the federal Department of Homeland Security, at one point, some 1,000 rioters had surrounded a federal law enforcement building, assaulting ICE law enforcement officers, slashing tires, and defacing the building. Though LAPD headquarters is located just five minutes away, “It took the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) two hours to respond.”
U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) released a statement linking Democratic politics and actions to the violence in Los Angeles.
“Democrat-run sanctuary cities have outright ignored and refused to enforce the law for years. Just days ago, one mayor compared ICE agents to neo-Nazis. Now, we’re seeing violence and vandalism in response to border patrol agents trying to do their jobs. This type of rhetoric and behavior is totally unacceptable in America.”
But many Democrats across the U.S. have denounced Trump and defended the rioters — or at least offered justifications for their actions. Twenty-two Democratic governors, including Gov. Josh Shapiro, signed a letter denouncing Trump’s deployment of the National Guard over Newsom’s objections.
U.S. Rep Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), a Democratic congressional leader, said Monday, “Trump responded to peaceful protests standing up for immigrants in Los Angeles with tear gas and rubber bullets. He’s a wannabe dictator using violence to advance his authoritarian playbook.”
But here in southern Pennsylvania, congressional Democrats have largely dodged the debate.
U.S. Reps. Madeleine Dean (D-Montgomery) and Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Delaware) declined to respond to requests for comment, nor have they posted any comments on Twitter/X.
DVJournal asked Shapiro to weigh in. Shapiro, a former state attorney general with a law-and-order reputation, declined to respond to questions about events in L.A.
U.S. Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester) didn’t comment, but she did retweet a statement from the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee where she serves.
“The federalization and deployment of the California National Guard over the objections of state and local officials in California risks dangerous escalation of the situation in Los Angeles County.”
All three local Democrats have voted against increased immigration enforcement efforts, including the Laken Riley Act, which was passed earlier this year. Both the results of the 2024 elections and recent polling show that most Americans believe Democrats have fumbled the immigration enforcement issue. CBS News just released a poll last weekend showing Americans solidly support Trump’s policy of deporting illegal aliens, 54 to 46 percent.
Members of SEIU protest ICE raids in Philadelphia on Monday.
But Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) posted on X a warning to his fellow Democrats, complete with a photo of cars on fire in L.A.
“I unapologetically stand for free speech, peaceful demonstrations, and immigration—but this is not that. This is anarchy and true chaos. My party loses the moral high ground when we refuse to condemn setting cars on fire, destroying buildings, and assaulting law enforcement,” said Fetterman.
Bucks County Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick tweeted in part, “It is as simple as this: If you do not support law and order, then you do not support democracy itself. Period. Legal immigration and the enforcement of the rule of the law are the hallmarks of American Democracy. Disrespecting and harming our law enforcement officers, destroying people’s property, and disrespecting the rule of law are the hallmarks of those who seek to destroy American Democracy. I stand, and will always stand, with respecting the rule of law, those who enforce it, and those who follow it.”
Also on Monday, some 200 anti-ICE protesters with the Philadelphia Service Employees International Union (SEIU) demonstrated in Philadelphia near Independence Hall. SEIU members are irate that longtime labor leader and civil rights activist David Huerta was arrested in Los Angeles after he tried to organize an effort to block ICE agents from being able to execute a federal search warrant.
At the rally in Philadelphia, local SEIU official Sam Williams led the crowd in chants of “Stop the ICE raids now” and “Free David Huerta.”
Huerta was released from federal custody Monday on a $50,000 bond after a hearing in federal court in Los Angeles.
“The Trump administration has a zero-tolerance policy for criminal behavior and violence, especially when that violence is aimed at law enforcement officers trying to do their jobs,” said White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt. “These criminals will be arrested and swiftly brought to justice. The commander-in-chief will ensure the laws of the United States are executed fully and completely.”
