Republican Senator James Lankford of Oklahoma appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday, defending President Trump’s decision to deploy 2,000 National Guard troops without a governor’s sign-off and addressing a range of pressing national and international issues.
Senator Lankford asserted that President Trump’s aim in deploying the National Guard is to “de-escalate all the tensions that are there.”
He cited scenes of “burning cars in intersections” and “concrete blocks being thrown at federal law enforcement,” drawing parallels to past unrest in Seattle and Portland.
Lankford argued that the deployment is intended to prevent the situation from spiraling out of control, stating, “This is not going to take weeks this time.” He also criticized the presence of individuals “flying Mexican flags and saying, ‘You cannot arrest us,'” emphasizing that federal laws must be enforced.
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When pressed by Kristen Welker about Governor Newsom’s assertion of “no unmet law enforcement need” and the LAPD’s characterization of protests as peaceful, Lankford maintained that local law enforcement is being “overwhelmed” by the scale of the protests. He dismissed the idea of active-duty Marines being involved in direct law enforcement roles, suggesting they would be in “support roles.” Lankford attributed some of the current challenges to “sanctuary city policies” in California, which he claims encourage violations of federal law.
The conversation shifted to the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, where the Supreme Court had ordered his return to the U.S. Senator Lankford confirmed Abrego Garcia’s return under a federal grand jury indictment for human smuggling, stating, “that is the justice system working through the process.”
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When questioned about due process for non-citizens, Lankford clarified that while everyone receives due process, it differs for citizens and non-citizens, often being a “faster process” for the latter. He emphasized that being read a statute for a violation can constitute due process for those illegally present.
The interview also delved into the public spat between President Trump and Elon Musk regarding the “Big Beautiful Bill.” While acknowledging the “social media drama,” Senator Lankford steered the focus to the bill’s core purpose: preventing a significant tax increase for Americans set to occur on January 1st.
He disagreed with Musk’s characterization that the bill “adds too much to the debt,” arguing that the Congressional Budget Office’s assumptions don’t account for the negative economic impact of a major tax increase. Lankford stated the bill aims to “keep the tax rates the same” and address “mandatory spending” in areas like Medicaid.
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Finally, Senator Lankford touched upon his recent trip to the Middle East, including Israel. Regarding Gaza, he reiterated his previous statement about the “unexplainable how much destruction has occurred.”
He clarified that the U.S. is “not taking over Gaza by any means” and that it is not America’s responsibility to run it. Instead, he emphasized the importance of humanitarian aid, preventing Hamas from controlling Gaza, and securing the release of Israeli hostages. Lankford mentioned efforts to establish a process for Gulf states and others to contribute to rebuilding the area.
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