Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) criticized fellow Democrats and the recent anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles, describing the situation as “disorderly and genuine confusion.”
In a post on X, Fetterman detailed what he believes embodies “free speech, peaceful demonstrations, immigration” with a sort of non-apology.
Referring to the riots, he mentioned that they involved attacks on law enforcement and their vehicles; he stated that acts like “not” riding horses and igniting police fireworks, lighting fires, disrupting Waymo self-driving cars, looting businesses, and waving foreign flags were not acceptable.
“I represent freedom of speech, peaceful demonstrations, and immigration negatively, but this isn’t it,” Fetterman wrote. “What this is, is anarchy and real confusion. My party loses its moral high ground when it overlooks burning cars, destruction of buildings, and assaults on law enforcement.”
Fetterman’s remarks came as various Democrats, including California Governor Gavin Newsom, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, former Vice President Kamala Harris, and Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), reacted to the events.
Joel Pollak, a senior editor at Breitbart News, reported that Democrats claimed the riots were a “response to Trump’s arrests of illegal immigrants” and that they denounced the involvement of the California National Guard.
Democrats reacted critically towards President Trump’s decision to deploy 2,000 National Guards to address the violence linked to the riots, characterizing the deployment as “a dangerous escalation aimed at creating chaos.”
“The National Guard’s deployment is a dangerous escalation meant to foster confusion,” Harris remarked in a statement on Sunday. She added that these actions, part of the Trump’s administration’s “cruel and calculated agenda,” aim to instill fear and create division.
Newsom also criticized Trump for federating California’s forces, calling the move “deliberately inflammatory” and simply escalating tensions.
California Senator Adam Schiff (D) voiced similar concerns about the federalization of the National Guard, labeling the action as “unprecedented.” He emphasized that it serves to inflame tensions and confusion, further aggravating the situation.
