Tech billionaire calls for Trump to send National Guard to San Francisco
A homeless encampment in front of the shuttered Civic Center Inn on the corner of Ellis and Polk Streets in the Tenderloin District in 2023. David G. McIntyre
Tech billionaire Marc Benioff, CEO of Salesforce and owner of Time magazine, has publicly called on President Trump to send the National Guard to San Francisco, expressing his “full support” for the president’s agenda in a Friday interview with The New York Times.
Benioff, a San Francisco native, made the request ahead of his annual Dreamforce conference, citing security concerns. “We don’t have enough cops, so if [the National Guard] can be cops, I’m all for it,” he told The Times while flying in his private plane. The billionaire noted that he personally pays for hundreds of off-duty officers to patrol the convention area and said the city needed to “re-fund” its police force.
San Francisco’s police department currently has around 1,500 officers, but Benioff suggested the force should be nearly double that. “You’ll see. When you walk through San Francisco next week, there will be cops on every corner. That’s how it used to be,” he said.
During the nearly hour-long interview, Benioff repeatedly praised President Trump. “I fully support the president,” he said. “I think he’s doing a great job.” The two have become closer allies recently, with Benioff attending a state dinner hosted by King Charles at Windsor Castle, where he sat across from President Trump.
Benioff also highlighted his contributions to San Francisco, noting he has donated over $1 billion to Bay Area charities, colleges, and other local causes. “I don’t think anyone has hired more people or given more money or supported San Francisco more than I have,” he said.
However, his remarks drew sharp criticism from local officials. San Francisco Supervisor Myrna Melgar told The Times that Benioff’s call for the National Guard “threw me for a loop” and called it “out of step and out of touch with what most San Franciscans would want.”
District Attorney Brooke Jenkins responded more aggressively on social media, warning that any illegal actions targeting residents would be met with strict enforcement. “I can’t be silent any longer,” Jenkins wrote on X. “If you come to San Francisco and illegally harass our residents, use excessive force, or cross any other boundaries that the law proscribes, I will not hesitate to do my job and hold you accountable.”
President Trump has previously deployed the National Guard to cities including Los Angeles, Memphis, and most recently Chicago to support ICE operations during “Operation Midway Blitz.”
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