Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says footage of an Australian journalist being shot with a rubber bullet in Los Angeles was “horrific”, but won’t confirm if he will raise his concerns directly with President Donald Trump.
Lauren Tomasi, Nine Network’s US correspondent, was recording a piece to camera about the protests against immigration raids when she was struck in the leg.
The incident was caught live on camera, with footage showing an officer taking aim in the direction of the journalist and firing.
After Albanese’s National Press Club address on Tuesday, Nine’s political editor Charles Croucher asked for his thoughts on the incident and the PM said he had spoken with Tomasi.
“She’s going OK. She’s pretty resilient, I’ve got to say. But that footage was horrific.
“That was the footage of an Australian journalist doing what journalists do at their very best, at their very best, which is to go into an environment that’s not comfortable… it is not unreasonable to think that she would not have been targeted with a rubber bullet.”
Noting that Tomasi was clearly identified as a member of the media – “she wasn’t wearing a trackie!” – Albanese said his government had already raised the issue with the US administration. He would not confirm if he would discuss it personally with Trump.
“Discussions I have with the President are discussions between myself and the President. That’s the way that I deal with people, diplomatically, appropriately and with respect. So I’ll leave the discussions with the President until they occur, rather than foreshadow them.”
Earlier, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the shooting “must be called out in the strongest terms”, urging Albanese to ask Trump for an explanation.
The LA Police Department has reportedly launched a formal investigation into the shooting.
Meanwhile, a public spat between Trump and California’s Democrat Governor has rapidly escalated after Trump authorised the deployment of more troops – including 700 Marines – to quell unrest in Los Angeles.
The announcement that 700 marines would be sent the LA came on Tuesday morning, and was followed shortly after by an order that an addition 2000 members of the National Guard would also be dispatched.
The swiftly evolving situation over protests surrounding immigration enforcement actions has provided fertile ground for a public spat between Trump and California’s Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom, a long-standing critic of the President.
The round of insults has culminated in a semi-serious claim by Trump that the Governor should be arrested, for the crime of being “a bad governor”.
Newsom, who has described the presence of troops on the streets of Los Angeles as “illegal and immoral”, responded with a post on X saying the call for the arrest of a sitting Governor as “an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism”.
The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor.
This is a day I hoped I would never see in America.
I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican this is a line we cannot cross as a nation — this is an unmistakable step toward… pic.twitter.com/tsTX1nrHAu
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) June 9, 2025
He claimed in another social media post that the first 2000 troops had been given no food or water, and that only around 300 were deployed.
“The rest are sitting, unused, in federal buildings without orders. This isn’t about public safety. It’s about stroking a dangerous President’s ego. This is Reckless. Pointless. And Disrespectful to our troops.”
About 700 Marines are being deployed from their base in the Southern California desert to protect federal property and personnel, including federal immigration agents, US Northern Command said in a statement.
Trump has not invoked the Insurrection Act to allow the Marines and National Guard troops to carry out law enforcement duties. It is not clear if he intends to.
Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said on Monday (local time) he was confident in his department’s ability to handle large-scale demonstrations and that the Marines’ arrival without coordinating with police presented a “significant logistical and operational challenge” for them.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a planned lawsuit over the use of National Guard troops, saying Trump had “trampled” the state’s sovereignty.
“We don’t take lightly to the President abusing his authority and unlawfully mobilising California National Guard troops,” Bonta said.
He accused Trump of fanning protesters’ anger with his National Guard deployment, saying that set off Sunday’s clashes with law enforcement in downtown Los Angeles.
“This was not inevitable,” he said.
Bonta planned to seek a court order declaring Trump’s use of the Guard unlawful and asking for a restraining order to halt the deployment.
The arrival of the National Guard followed two days of protests beginning on Friday after federal immigration authorities arrested more than 40 people across the city.
Crowds blocked a major freeway and set self-driving cars on fire as police responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang grenades.
On Sunday, many protesters dispersed as night fell and police declared an unlawful assembly. Some of those who stayed threw objects such as rocks and electric scooters at police and their vehicles.
Several dozen people were arrested throughout the weekend. One was detained for throwing a petrol bomb at police and another for ramming a motorcycle into a line of officers.
Trump said on Monday that the city would have been “completely obliterated” if he had not deployed the Guard.
Later, at a White House event, he added that state leaders “were afraid to do anything.”
Other protests were forming across LA County, as confirmed reports of federal immigration agents in the cities of Whittier and Huntington Park south of Los Angeles spurred anger from activists. More protests were scheduled for cities across the country.
–with AAP
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