The Steady State Statement Regarding
The Steady State
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 9, 2025
Washington, D.C. — The Steady State, a nonpartisan coalition of more than 280 former national security professionals, today condemned the inappropriate and incendiary actions of President Donald Trump and the inflammatory statements of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth regarding the deployment of military forces in Los Angeles.
Neither the Los Angeles Police Department, nor Mayor Karen Bass, nor California Governor Gavin Newsom—whom the President derisively referred to as “Gavin Newscum”—has requested federal military assistance. Nor has any local or state official declared or identified a state of emergency that would warrant such intervention. Nevertheless, President Trump’s decision to mobilize the National Guard and place Marine units at Camp Pendleton on heightened alert reflects an alarming escalation in federal posture.
Equally disturbing is the President’s subsequent decree forbidding protestors from wearing protective masks—an edict issued within hours of his announcement that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will be required to wear masks while conducting enforcement activities. This contradictory directive is both illogical and chilling, and appears designed to intimidate and suppress lawful dissent. It was followed by a Presidential statement calling for the “liberation” of LA from what he called an invasion and occupation “by Illegal Aliens and Criminals,” asserting that there are “[n]ow violent, insurrectionist mobs are swarming and attacking our Federal Agents to try and stop our deportation operation… and directed the Secretaries of Defense, Homeland and the Attorney Genera
l “to take all such action necessary to liberate Los Angeles from the Migrant Invasion, and put an end to these Migrant riots.” This language is not only extreme, it is incendiary.
“The use of federal military force in the absence of local or state requests, paired with contradictory mandates targeting protestors, is a hallmark of authoritarian drift,” The Steady State said in a statement. “Our members—many of whom have served in fragile democracies abroad—have seen this pattern before. What begins as provocative posturing can rapidly metastasize into something far more dangerous.”
The Steady State urges all public officials, including members of Congress and state leaders, to speak out firmly and immediately. This moment is not yet catastrophic, but it is a critical step toward autocracy. Silence or acquiescence would be a grave error.
Founded in 2016, The Steady State is a nonpartisan, nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization of more than 280 former senior national security professionals. Our membership includes former officials from the CIA, FBI, Department of State, Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security. Drawing on deep expertise across national security disciplines including intelligence, diplomacy, military affairs and law, we advocate for constitutional democracy, the rule of law and the preservation of America’s national security institutions.