Podcaster Joe Rogan ripped into Trump’s deployment of troops onto the streets of U.S. cities, warning that it could have serious long-term consequences.
He slammed President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy National Guard troops to several cities, calling it a “dangerous precedent” during Wednesday’s episode of The Joe Rogan Experience.
While comedian Rogan has repeatedly endorsed tighter border controls, he’s drawn a line between enforcement and overreach.
Speaking about why people supported Trump with comedian Bryan Callen, Rogan said voters realized “there was a crazy thing happening where the border was wide open.” Rogan—who publicly backed Trump’s 2024 campaign—made clear that support doesn’t mean blanket approval.
“But does that mean that you support everything that they’re doing now, where they’re kicking people out?” Rogan said. “No! No. The storming into the f---ing Home Depot and arresting people? No, that’s not cool either.”
He added: “The military in the street, I think, is a dangerous precedent.”
Trump has authorized hundreds of National Guard troops to Chicago as part of “Operation Midway Blitz,” a move his administration framed as an effort to bolster immigration enforcement and tackle crime. Similar deployments were made to Los Angeles earlier this year.
The comedian-podcaster made criticisms of Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s tactics, saying earlier this month that “the way it looks is horrific.”
He described seeing longtime residents taken away from their families, “Everybody who has a heart sees that and goes, ‘That can’t be right.’”
He said that undocumented immigrants who’ve lived and worked in the U.S. without criminal records should have a path to legal status.
“There’s a balance to be had here,” Rogan said on Wednesday’s show. “And there’s a conversation to be had.”
The White House did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said earlier this month that the administration’s use of the National Guard and ICE is part of a fight against “lawlessness.”
“Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness that local leaders like [Illinois Governor] Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets,” she said.
“President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities, and we expect to be vindicated by a higher court.”
