President Donald Trump boasted that he “saved Los Angeles,” saying that if he hadn’t sent in troops, Gov. Gavin Newsom “would have had a real problem.” He added that his team “sent our troops right in at the beginning and we killed it,” a victory-lap line that ricocheted across social media.
Newsom wasn’t having it. “Here’s what Donald Trump’s troops did. Stop disrespecting our men and women in uniform,” he fired back on X, posting a picture of uniformed service members sprawled asleep on a hard floor. The image instantly became the moment’s symbol, even as the exact location of the photo remained unclear.
Here’s what Donald Trump’s troops did.
Stop disrespecting our men and women in uniform. https://t.co/36lr3a8pDn pic.twitter.com/8qNqLTKnnL
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 8, 2025
What’s not unclear is that similar images of uniformed personnel sleeping shoulder-to-shoulder on bare floors in Los Angeles have circulated before, fueling criticism about planning and conditions during the deployment. The optics were rough: no cots, no bunks, just concrete, backpacks for pillows, and bodies catching sleep wherever they could. For Newsom, it was the perfect counterpunch to Trump’s “we saved L.A.” storyline.
The governor’s broader jab was simple, and sharp, accusing Trump of showboating while shortchanging the basics. If you send troops, the argument goes, you ensure they have the essentials, from food and water to a decent place to sleep. The photo did the talking. One viral frame beats a thousand podium boasts.
“Wildly underprepared”: National Guard troops seen sleeping on floors.
The military commanders can reject unlawful orders. Sending in troops to attack your own citizens is an unlawful order.
Stop following unlawful orders. pic.twitter.com/vm7U1feK4t— Anonymous (@YourAnonNews) June 10, 2025
The White House, for its part, insists the intervention was necessary to protect people and property, and the president’s “we killed it” line is meant to cement that narrative for voters. It’s a clean rescue story, a decisive leader stepping in when local officials are “failing.” But Newsom’s image undercuts that gloss, replacing the hero reel with a gritty backstage look at the cost of that decision.
The fight also taps into a deeper debate over how and when to use troops on domestic missions, and what “support” really means. Is it about the speech and the swagger, or the logistics and the welfare of the people in uniform? Newsom framed the answer with a photo, and it landed because it feels human and undeniable: exhausted faces, knees tucked, fluorescent lights above, boots scattered across a cold floor.
Are California National Guard soldiers sleeping on the floor in LA? Sorry @harryjsisson and @GavinNewsom this is perfectly normal and if either of you two had ever served, you would know this. There is plenty you can criticize about the troop deployments without resorting to lies pic.twitter.com/L6HV8xdTJM
— Ryan McBeth (@RyanMcbeth) June 10, 2025
Beyond the back-and-forth, the political math is obvious. Trump wants voters to remember the promise he saved L.A. Newsom wants them to remember the picture—troops sleeping on hard floors. The quote is neat and tidy. The image is messy and uncomfortable. Guess which one audiences tend to keep in their heads.
In classic online fashion, the argument was decided by scroll power. Trump’s claim lit up the feeds for a minute, but Newsom’s post gave critics a visual they could share, meme, and reframe endlessly. That’s how modern narratives are made: not just with what’s said from a podium, but with what sticks on a phone screen.
