California governor says Trump ‘putting ego over responsibility’ as military show shuts highway

Gavin Newsom says safety concerns forced state officials to close a portion of the busy Interstate 55 on Saturday

Diana Ramirez-Simon and agencies

Sun 19 Oct 2025 03.34 BST

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The California governor, Gavin Newsom, has accused Donald Trump of “putting his ego over responsibility” over a military showcase that involved firing live artillery shells over a major highway in the state’s south.

Newsom said safety concerns over the event forced state officials to close a portion of the busy Interstate 5 near the US Marine Camp Pendleton base on Saturday.

“The president is putting his ego over responsibility with this disregard for public safety,” the Democratic governor said in a statement. “Firing live rounds over a busy highway isn’t just wrong – it’s dangerous. Using our military to intimidate people you disagree with isn’t strength – it’s reckless, it’s disrespectful, and it’s beneath the office he holds.”

A man waves a flag above a crowd.

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In an earlier post on X, Newsom had condemned the event as an “absurd show of force” and “totally uncalled for”.

US Marine officials said there was nothing unsafe about the exercise at Camp Pendleton, where firing artillery is a routine occurrence, and that it was unnecessary to disrupt traffic on Interstate 5, which is the main highway along the Pacific coast between San Diego and Los Angeles.

The California Highway Patrol said in a statement the military event would involve “live ammunition being discharged by the federal government over the freeway” and made the call to temporarily close a portion of the freeway due to the safety risk and distractions to drivers.

JD Vance walks on stage to deliver remarks at the event at Camp Pendleton.

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JD Vance walks on stage to deliver remarks at the event at Camp Pendleton. Photograph: Oliver Contreras/AFP/Getty Images

The event celebrated the US marines’ 250th anniversary and included a live-fire amphibious capabilities demonstration at Red Beach in Oceanside in north-western San Diego county.

Vic-president JD Vance, a former enlisted marine who served in Iraq, spoke at the event that was attended by thousands of marines, sailors, veterans and families, while defense secretary Pete Hegseth also delivered remarks.

“The capabilities demonstration will feature integrated Navy and Marine Corps operations across air, land and sea,” the Marines’ statement said.

US defense secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the event at Camp Pendleton

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US defense secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the event. Photograph: Oliver Contreras/AFP/Getty Images

The dispute underscored the growing tensions between Trump and the California governor, who has frequently called out decisions by the president’s administration.

Earlier in October, the navy hosted the president aboard an aircraft carrier off the coast of Virginia to celebrate the same military anniversary. Trump turned that event into a political rally.

Smoke rises during the amphibious capabilities demonstration

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Smoke rises during the amphibious capabilities demonstration. Photograph: Oliver Contreras/AFP/Getty Images

Saturday’s military event coincided with No Kings rallies and marches held across the US, including several locations in California, aligning behind a message that the nation’s slide into authoritarian rule under Trump needs to stop.

Newsom cautioned those participating in the rallies: “I urge our nation to use this weekend’s No Kings marches as a declaration of independence against the tyranny and lawlessness currently running this country. Use your voice. ACT PEACEFULLY. Protect yourself and your community. THERE ARE NO KINGS IN THE UNITED STATES.”

In a statement to the New York Times, a spokesperson for Vance, William Martin, said Newsom was misleading the public about the safety risk for Saturday’s event. He said it was routine training. “If Gavin Newsom wants to oppose the training exercises that ensure our armed forces are the deadliest and most lethal fighting force in the world, then he can go right ahead,” Martin said.

Matt Rocco, the California department of transportation spokesperson, said: “This is all because of the White House-directed military event, that for the safety of the public, we need to shut down the freeway since they’re sending live ordnances over the freeway.”

Rocco said the I5 closure could cost up to another two hours of trip time for those commuting between San Diego and Los Angeles. The freeway carries 80,000 travelers and $94m in freight through the corridor daily, according to the governor’s office. Passenger rail services running parallel to the I5 were also canceled for the afternoon.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5787675&forum_id=2),#49359053)