Politics and views in the United States.

White House says there will be more ICE raids, as protests spread across the county. California Gov. Newsom says democracy is at a crossroads, and Elon Musk says he 'regrets' social media posts about President Trump.

TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to 2025 talks where we're following our democracy in historic times.

The president supports the right of Americans to peaceably protest.

He supports the first amendment, but that is not the majority of the behavior that we have seen taking place in Los Angeles.

White House Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt says they'll continue to crack down on attempts to stop immigration enforcement and says ice sweeps would continue even as protests spread.

President Donald Trump justifies his unusual move to deploy active duty Marines by characterizing the protests as a paid invasion of insurrectionists.

But reports Wednesday said the Marines are not yet facing the crowds, but only training at a separate location.

California Governor Gavin Newsom insists they're unneeded and in fact, using active duty troops for law enforcement puts the nation's democratic values in serious jeopardy.

California may be first, but it clearly will not end here.

Other states are next.

Democracy is next.

Democracy is under assault before our eyes.

Federal court has paused a lawsuit filed by California to force withdrawal of the Marines and National Guard with a hearing scheduled.

Millions of people are now expected to join a nationwide day of defiance Saturday.

The no King's rallies had already been scheduled for the same day as a huge military parade in Washington, D.C.

Aaliyah Greenberg with Indivisible says it's coming just as the Trump administration is increasing its attacks on civil liberties.

They are illegally sending troops into Los Angeles, intentionally attempting to escalate in order to justify broader crackdowns on dissent.

A federal court heard an appeal Wednesday to Trump's criminal conviction related to adult film star Hush Money payments.

The president's legal team is fighting to have the case moved from New York state courts to the federal system in the hope of having it dismissed on the grounds of presidential immunity.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says they've completed a trade deal with China and for now tariffs on that nation will stay at 55 percent.

The deal also removes Chinese export restrictions on rare earth minerals and allows Chinese students access to American universities.

Local abortion rights advocates say Health and Human Services is threatening women's health by revoking a rule that hospitals have to provide abortion care in emergencies.

Tamara Wyder with Planned Parenthood in Kentucky says that'll be especially catastrophic for women in rural counties.

People have already turned up at emergency rooms because of our abortion restrictions.

Doctors have been forced to wait till patients were at life-threatening situations, sepsis, hemorrhage, before they are able to provide care.

Finally, billionaire Elon Musk says he regrets some of his social media posts targeting Trump and the budget reconciliation package he called a "disgusting abomination."

I'm Alex Gonzalez for Pacific Network and Public News Service.

Find our trust indicators at publicnewsservice.org.