The State of Oregon and the City of Portland have sued the Trump Administration after National Guard troops were deployed to the area.
Federal officials have defended the deployment, emphasizing a need to “make Portland safer” in the wake of protests at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities, but the City pushed back on this argument, calling the protests “small.”
On September 27, President Donald Trump (R) made a post on Truth Social announcing that, at the request of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, he would be directing Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth — who is also now known as the Secretary of War under a recent Executive Order — to send “all necessary Troops” to the City.
“At the request of Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, I am directing Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland, and any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists,” wrote the President.
“I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary,” President Trump added. “Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
Since then, Oregon’s Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek has spoken out in response to the Administration’s decision to deploy two hundred members of the state’s National Guard to Portland for a sixty day period with the directive to protect ICE personnel and government facilities.
“When the president and I spoke yesterday, I told him in plain language that there is no insurrection or threat to public safety that necessitates military intervention in Portland or any other city in our state,” Gov. Kotek said in a news release Sunday, according to NBC News.
“Despite this — and all evidence to the contrary — he has chosen to disregard Oregonians’ safety and ability to govern ourselves,” Kotek continued. “This is not necessary. And it is unlawful. And it will make Oregonians less safe.”
Kotek has also posted on X stating that they “don’t need military intervention here,” saying that she “was in downtown Portland walking peacefully with Oregonians.”
“We are peaceful. We are united. We are Oregon,” she wrote.
The White House has continued to defend their decision to send in the National Guard to Oregon.
“President Trump is using his lawful authority to direct the National Guard to protect federal assets and personnel in Portland following months of violent riots where officers have been assaulted and doxxed by left-wing rioters,” said White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson.
“The President called forth these 200 Guardsmen to deter rampant lawlessness within Portland and to enable Federal law-enforcement officers to safely conduct their duties,” added Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell.
According to NBC News, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not respond to requests for comment from the press.
In the lawsuit filed by the State of Oregon and City of Portland, it is argued that the federal government overstepped its constitutional authority in sending in the National Guard.
“Defendants have trampled on these principles by federalizing members of the Oregon National Guard for deployment in Portland, Oregon, to participate in civilian law enforcement,” the filing says.
The filing then goes on to suggest that only about thirty people or less were actually involved in the ICE protests that sparked the federal government sending in the National Guard.
“While Defendants’ actions appear focused on ongoing protests near an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Portland, those protests have been small in recent weeks—typically involving less than thirty people—and the protesters’ activities have not necessitated any arrests since mid-June,” said the complaint.
This is not the first time that a National Guard deployment by the Trump Administration has been challenged in court.
Earlier this month, a California judge ruled that the federal government violated the law when it sent the National Guard into Los Angeles alongside active-duty U.S. Marines in response to ICE protests taking place there over the summer.
In a 52-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer determined that the Trump Administration violated the Posse Comitatus Act, a 1878 law that prohibits the use of the military for domestic law enforcement.
The latest complaint, submitted by the State of Oregon and City of Portland, was filed Sunday and alleges violations both of federal law and the Constitution.
As a result of this lawsuit, Oregon and Portland hope to see the courts prevent the Trump Administration from federalizing and deploying the National Guard.
