After a judge blocked President Donald Trump’s attempts to federalize Oregon’s National Guard to Portland, he dispatched hundreds of troops from California instead Sunday. But hours later, after about 100 service members had set foot in Oregon, a federal court halted the call-up (opens in new tab).
The deployment drew condemnation from Gov. Gavin Newsom, who vowed to take legal action when he found out about it Sunday morning and celebrated the temporary stay after it was announced later in the day.
“The rule of law has prevailed — and California’s National Guard will be heading home,” the governor said. “This ruling is more than a legal victory, it’s a victory for American democracy itself. Donald Trump tried to turn our soldiers into instruments of his political will, and while our fight continues, tonight the rule of law said, ‘Hell no.’”
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield echoed the sentiment in a news conference before Sunday’s ruling, characterizing Trump’s action as an illegal sidestepping of a federal court mandate.
“What was unlawful with the Oregon National Guard is unlawful with the California National Guard,” Rayfield told reporters (opens in new tab). “The judge’s order was not some minor procedural point for the president to work around like my 14-year-old does when he doesn’t like my answers.”
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Earlier in the day, Newsom rebuked the president for overstepping his authority.
“This is a breathtaking abuse of the law and power,” he said. “The Trump administration is unapologetically attacking the rule of law itself and putting into action their dangerous words — ignoring court orders and treating judges, even those appointed by the president himself, as political opponents.”
Some 300 California National Guard members were on their way to Oregon when the governor issued his first statement. All of them were returning home, he announced after the latest court order, which came in response to an amended complaint (opens in new tab) filed Sunday by Rayfield in Oregon and his counterpart in California, Attorney General Rob Bonta.
The federal court orders this weekend by Trump-appointed U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut (opens in new tab) mark the latest pushback against the president as he tries to deploy troops to U.S. cities against the objections of governors and local leaders.
That same day, the president sent troops to Chicago despite protestations from Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. Over the summer, Trump called troops to Washington, D.C., and sent 4,000 National Guard members and 700 active Marines to Los Angeles, where local officials sued to block the deployments.
The Constitution bars military force for civilian law enforcement (opens in new tab). But the president has the authority to use troops to protect federal property and staff in response to unrest that interferes with the ability to enforce the law or risks boiling over into outright rebellion against the U.S. government.
The Trump administration claims federal officials have been unable to enforce immigration laws in response to protests in L.A., Chicago, Portland, and other cities.
Immergut acknowledged that the president has broad discretion. But even by that standard, she rejected Trump’s justification for federalizing 200 of Oregon’s National Guard members to Portland, where protests have been largely peaceful (opens in new tab) and have dwindled to crowds of two dozen, if not fewer.
Gov. Tina Kotek disputed Trump’s attempts to cast Portland as a war zone.
“The facts haven’t changed,” she said in a joint press release (opens in new tab) with AG Rayfield and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson. “There is no need for military intervention in Oregon. There is no insurrection in Portland. No threat to national security. Oregon is our home, not a military target.”
In her ruling, Immergut said the administration’s arguments were not “conceived in good faith” and were “simply untethered to the facts.”
“This historical tradition boils down to a simple proposition: This is a nation of Constitutional law, not martial law,” the judge wrote. “Defendants have made a range of arguments that, if accepted, risk blurring the line between civil and military federal power — to the detriment of this nation.”
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the ICE agents the Trump administration says it’s trying to protect, declined to comment. “We defer you to the Department of War,” a spokesperson wrote in an email to The Standard.
The White House initially responded with an automated email.
“Due to staff shortages resulting from the Democrat Shutdown, the typical 24/7 monitoring of this press inbox may experience delays,” it said. “We ask for your patience as our staff work to field your requests in a timely manner. As you await a response, please remember this could have been avoided if the Democrats voted for the clean continuing resolution to keep the government open.”
Later, spokesperson Abigail Jackson reached out with a statement saying, “President Trump exercised his lawful authority to protect federal assets and personnel in Portland following violent riots and attacks on law enforcement.”
“For once,” she continued, “Gavin Newscum should stand on the side of law-abiding citizens instead of violent criminals destroying Portland and cities across the country.”
When asked for comment after the second court injunction, Jackson responded by saying the White House expects to be vindicated by a higher court.
“The facts haven’t changed,” she said. “President Trump exercised his lawful authority to protect federal assets and personnel in Portland following violent riots and attacks on law enforcement.”