Twice-failed Democrat presidential candidate Kamala Harris has provoked a backlash on social media after she attempted to blame the violent rioting in Los Angeles on President Donald Trump.
Harris was slammed by conservatives after she issued an anti-Trump statement on the anti-ICE riots.
In the same statement, Harris called the violent unrest “overwhelmingly peaceful.”
Over the weekend, riots caused destruction and chaos across the city.
The violence is led by leftist rioters upset with federal agents arresting illegal immigrants in the city.
The days of unrest prompted the Trump administration to send in the National Guard.
“Los Angeles is my home,” Harris posted Sunday.
“And like so many Americans, I am appalled at what we are witnessing on the streets of our city,” she said.
“Deploying the National Guard is a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.
“In addition to the recent ICE raids in Southern California and across our nation, it is part of the Trump Administration’s cruel, calculated agenda to spread panic and division.”
Harris added that the Trump administration is not concerned about “public safety” but rather “stoking fear.”
“Protest is a powerful tool — essential in the fight for justice,” she said.
“And as the LAPD, Mayor, and Governor have noted, demonstrations in defense of our immigrant neighbors have been overwhelmingly peaceful.
“I continue to support the millions of Americans who are standing up to protect our most fundamental rights and freedoms.”
My statement on what's unfolding in Los Angeles. pic.twitter.com/rujs8mrVPK
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 8, 2025
Harris’s comments were immediately criticized by conservatives online and by Trump officials.
“The country really dodged a bullet in November,” Fox News contributor Guy Benson posted on X.
“Their official position is that they’re appalled by what’s happening in Los Angeles…because of Trump and ICE, not the violent rioters,” Benson added in another post.
“In its current form, this party cannot be salvaged.”
“Thank you, America, for employing brain cells and rejecting this woman’s quest to become president of the United States,” Fox News contributor Katie Pavlich posted on X.
Others, including the conservative influencer account LibsofTikTok, took issue with Harris calling the unrest “mostly peaceful.”
LibsofTikTok responded with pictures of rioters burning cars and attacking law enforcement.
“Overwhelmingly peaceful” – Kamala Harris https://t.co/H4Efv5CuCH pic.twitter.com/e1fCFBep0c
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) June 8, 2025
“No surprise[sic] that the most incompetent Vice President in history stands with the illegal alien rioters,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) posted on X.
White House principal deputy press secretary Harrison Fields responded on X by posting a photo showing the gains Trump made across the country in the November 2024 election.
“America’s statement,” Fields added in the caption.
“No one is interested in your opinion,” Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Leo Terrell posted on X.
“President Trump didn’t start these riots,” California GOP gubernatorial candidate and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco posted on X.
“He’s not out there lighting cars on fire, hurling projectiles at law enforcement, or blocking freeways.
“This statement is an embarrassment and does nothing to diffuse the violent riots taking place across the city.
“The Democrats and their ‘leaders’ own this.”
Steve Hilton, also running for California governor as a Republican, posted on X:
“In this appalling statement, you are siding with violent criminals over California communities; rioters over law enforcement; illegal immigrants over legal immigrants and American citizens.
“You are a pandering machine politician who should never hold public office again.”
White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson posted on X:
“We all know you support lawless, violent, illegal alien rioters.
“That’s why you lost so badly in November.
“Back to irrelevancy you go!”
Trump deployed 2,000 National Guard troops to the city in an effort to quell some of the unrest, much to the dismay of Democrat officials.
The violent protests erupted as ICE officials carried out plans to remove individuals illegally residing in the left-wing city.
Those individuals were violent criminals, wanted on charges such as murder, rape, and robbery.
However, Los Angeles dubbed itself a “sanctuary” for illegal aliens in November 2024 before Trump was sworn back into the Oval Office in January.
ICE raids began Friday, with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, a Democrat, issuing a statement supporting illegal alien criminals in the city and bucking the Trump administration’s deportation efforts.
California’s Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom similarly criticized ICE efforts, branding the immigration raids “chaotic and reckless.”
“Continued chaotic federal sweeps, across California, to meet an arbitrary arrest quota are as reckless as they are cruel,” a statement from the governor read.
“Donald Trump’s chaos is eroding trust, tearing families apart, and undermining the workers and industries that power America’s economy.”
During the riots, ICE officers were targeted with violence that included throwing rocks and other projectiles, along with vandalism in the form of graffiti calling for violence against ICE officers.
U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks shared a photo of one Border Patrol agent’s bloody hand, which was injured by a rock flying through the windshield.
Federal sources said agents could have been killed by the flying debris.
Several officers have been reported as injured during the rioting.
ICE agents captured the “worst of the worst” criminal illegal aliens during Friday operations.
Those arrested, including murderers, sex offenders, and other violent criminals, the agency said Sunday.
About 45 people were arrested across several locations, including two Home Depot stores, a store in the fashion district, and a doughnut shop.
“Why do Governor Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass care more about violent murderers and sex offenders than they do about protecting their own citizens?” asked Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
“These rioters in Los Angeles are fighting to keep rapists, murderers, and other violent criminals loose on Los Angeles streets,” she said.
“Instead of rioting, they should be thanking ICE officers every single day who wake up and make our communities safer.”
READ MORE – Trump Deploys National Guard Troops in Los Angeles as Anti-ICE Riots Escalate
