California Gov. Gavin Newsom didn’t just sound the alarm this week — he showed it. In a pair of posts that quickly went viral, the governor delivered one of his sharpest warnings yet about Donald Trump’s growing use of federal power, using brief but cutting visuals to drive home just how serious he believes the threat has become.

Without naming him directly at first, Newsom laid out a step-by-step pattern he says the president is repeating in Democratic-led cities — one designed to create chaos, justify crackdowns, and then claim control.

Fans can’t stop zooming in after Newsom’s savage post of Trump (Photos Getty)

Government agents have violently raided apartment buildings in Chicago, workplaces in Los Angeles and made brutal arrests across the country, in many cases detaining Americans and not violent undocumented criminals as Trump promised to do during his campaign for president last year.

Newsom called him out over it in a post on X Wednesday after also threatening to sue Trump if the president went through with his now-rescinded threat to deploy immigration enforcement agents to San Francisco.

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“This is right out of the dictator’s handbook,” Newsom stated, his tone measured but unmistakably alarmed.

“Donald Trump does this over and over again. He says he’s going to send in the National Guard to address uncontrollable crime rates, which are fictitious. But first he needs to create conditions for anxiety. He needs to create the conditions that he can, quote, unquote, then solve for,” the governor continued.

“So, what does he do? He sends out masked men. He sends out border patrol. He sends out ICE, creates anxiety and fear in the community so he can lay claim to solving for that by sending in the Guard in the first place” Newsom explained.

“This is no different than the arsonist putting out the fire. We need to call that out, and we cannot play his game,” a serious Newsom urged.

Of course, many MAGA supporters agreed with using the military to coerce and frighten Americans. They reduced their outrage to Newsom’s viral post to name-calling and memes.

“BREAKING: WE THE PEOPLE VOTED FOR THIS , SEND THEM IN,” this X user yelled.

“When exactly? I’d love to take my family to San Francisco, but I’d prefer to avoid the chaos of bums, junkies and criminals. If you could share a date range so regular people can plan safe trips for once, that’d be great,” one user mocked in a tone that seemed to prove Newsom’s point about how easily fear can be stoked and weaponized.

But many others noted Newsom was spot on for his breakdown.

“He does it with everything, creates a false problem, then takes credit for fixing something that wasn’t broken to begin with,” observed Jan on Threads. While another added, “He is the most gaslighting son of a B ever to grace the planet.”

Others were more alarmed. “Trump needs to be stopped. He cannot be allowed to destroy lives in our city. It’s not enough to call it out. Families are going to suffer. Children may lose their parents. Do MORE PLEASE,” a Threads user pointed out.

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Others wanted to put an end to it, “We need to stop this..where is the army.”

At least one user , Michell , laid out an almost militant-sounding counter-strategy, “Here’s the PLAN: 1) As Newsom is doing, anti MAGA governors must activate their National Guard to protect their citizens from ICE; 2) They should also engage in ‘soft secession’ and stop giving funds to the feds; 3) The rest of us must immediately engage in an economic blackout!”

In another post on X under the official “Governor Newsom Press Office” handle, the governor switched tone — calm, controlled, but cutting.

The video featured ominous music under bold white letters: “TRUMP AND MILLER’S AUTHORITARIAN PLAYBOOK LOOKS LIKE THIS.”

Then came the breakdown — five steps, distilled into a one-minute masterclass in political manipulation. It begins with: “1) SAY YOU’RE GOING TO SEND IN THE NATIONAL GUARD TO A DEMOCRATICALLY RUN AMERICAN CITY.”

Clips then flash between Trump promising crackdowns and footage of armed agents patrolling U.S. streets, a chilling juxtaposition.

The video ends with a stark message: “DON’T PLAY INTO TRUMP’S GAME.”

Newsom’s warning isn’t just theoretical. Within the first nine months of Trump’s second term, the president has already ordered National Guard deployments to Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland, Washington, D.C., and most recently Memphis — often without requests from local officials.

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In Los Angeles, roughly 4,000 Guard members and 700 Marines were sent to “protect federal property” amid immigration-raid protests, a move that civil-rights groups say blurred the line between law enforcement and military occupation, according to Reuters.

Legal scholars and even some Republican governors have warned that such actions may violate long-standing limits on military involvement in domestic policing.

The PBS NewsHour noted that the president’s use of federal forces under Title 10 authority — which places troops under federal rather than state control — is “unprecedented in modern times” and potentially conflicts with the Posse Comitatus Act, which bars using the military for routine law enforcement.

‘We Need to Stop This!’: Newsom Strips Trump Naked, Exposing His Ruthless Power Playbook In Brutal 60-Second Clip That Sends MAGA Scrambling for Cover