Marc Benioff says Trump should deploy National Guard to San Francisco

Marc Benioff has become the latest Silicon Valley tech leader to express support for President Trump, saying the president is doing a good job and should deploy the National Guard to deal with crime in San Francisco.
The Salesforce CEO’s comments came as he was heading to San Francisco to host the annual Dreamforce conference, an event he said he would have to hire hundreds of off-duty police officers to provide security for.
“We don’t have enough police, so if they [National Guard] You can become a police officer, I’m all for it,” he told The New York Times on his private jet.
The National Guard is generally prohibited from performing domestic law enforcement duties when the president federalizes it.
Last month, a federal judge ruled that Trump’s use of National Guard troops in Los Angeles violated the Posse Comitatus Act — which restricts the use of troops for domestic law enforcement — and ordered that the troops not be used for law enforcement operations within California.
Trump also ordered the deployment of the National Guard to cities including Portland, Oregon, and Chicago, citing the need to protect federal officers and assets in the face of ongoing immigration protests. The efforts have been criticized by local leaders and have been the subject of ongoing legal battles.
President Trump has not yet sent troops to Northern California, but said in September that San Francisco could be a target for deployment. He said cities with Democratic political leadership, such as San Francisco, Chicago and Los Angeles, “are very unsafe places and we’re going to clean them up.”
“I told [Defense Secretary] Pete [Hegseth] We should be using some of these dangerous cities to train our military and our National Guard,” Trump said.
Benioff’s call to send National Guard troops to San Francisco was roundly condemned by several elected Democratic leaders in the area.
San Francisco District Atty. Brooke Jenkins said she “cannot remain silent any longer” and issued a fiery statement on X, threatening to sue any leaders or troops who harass residents.
“I have a responsibility to hold criminals accountable, and that includes holding government and law enforcement officials accountable for their violations,” she said. “If you come to San Francisco to unlawfully harass our residents, use excessive force, or cross any other line under the law, I will not hesitate to do my job and hold you accountable, just like I do with other lawbreakers every day.”
Sen. Scott Wiener, a San Francisco Democrat, also expressed outrage at X, saying “we neither need nor want an illegal military occupation of San Francisco.”
“Salesforce is a great San Francisco company that does a lot for our city,” he said. “Inviting Trump to send the National Guard here is not a good thing. Quite the opposite.”
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office issued a more muted response, touting the mayor’s efforts to improve public safety but declined to directly address Benioff’s remarks.
Charles Lutvak, a spokesman for the mayor, noted that the city saw a net increase in police officers and deputy chiefs for the first time in a decade. He also highlighted Lurie’s efforts to increase the number of police officers to 2,000.
“Citywide crime is down nearly 30 percent and is at its lowest point in decades,” Lutwak said. “We are moving in the right direction and will continue to prioritize safety and hiring while San Francisco law enforcement works hard every day to keep our city safe.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom, whose office has strongly opposed deploying the National Guard in Los Angeles, had no comment on Benioff’s remarks when reached by The Times late Friday.
Benioff and Newsom have long been considered friends, dating back to when Newsom was mayor of San Francisco. Newsom even named Benioff godfather to one of his children, the San Francisco Standard reported.
Benioff often calls himself an independent. He has donated to several liberal causes, including $30 million to the University of California, San Francisco, to study homelessness, and has contributed to previous political campaigns of former President Barack Obama, former Vice President Kamala Harris, Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Hillary Clinton.
However, he also donated to the campaigns of Republican former House Speaker Paul Ryan and Sen. John McCain and supported tougher anti-crime policies and reduced government spending.
Earlier this year, Benioff also praised Elon Musk’s Department of Federal Efficiency for its cost-cutting efforts.
“I fully support the president,” Benioff told The New York Times this week. “I think he did a great job.”