California Gov. Gavin Newsom said that the Trump administration is federalizing 300 California National Guard troops and sending them to Portland. This comes a day after a federal judge on Saturday blocked the Trump administration from deploying them to the Oregon city.
Newsom said he is going to sue over this.
“[Trump’s] deployment of the California National Guard to Oregon isn’t about crime,” Newsom said. “It’s about power. He is using our military as political pawns to build up his own ego. It’s appalling. It’s un-American. And it must stop.”
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Gov. Tina Kotek confirmed in a statement that 101 California National Guard members arrived in Oregon on Saturday night by plane and more were on the way. State government officials haven’t had formal communication about this with their federal counterparts, she added.
“This action appears to (be) intentional to circumvent yesterday’s ruling by a federal judge,” Kotek said. “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.”
Portland ruling
A temporary restraining order that halted the federalization of the Oregon National Guard granted by United States District Judge Karin Immergut expires on Oct. 18.
At a Friday hearing over the Oregon troops, local and federal officials gave conflicting accounts of protests in the city. An attorney for the United States Department of Justice, Eric Hamilton, pointed to Trump’s social media posts, stating that Portland is deteriorating into “lawless mayhem.” Trump administration lawyers also used incidents of lights being pointed in federal agents’ eyes and protesters throwing rocks to show that the federal government cannot enforce the law without the National Guard, Axios wrote.
However, lawyers for the city and state brought up Portland Police Bureau reports that protest activity had recently been “minimal,” and that federal troops being in the city could inflame the situation.
Sworn affidavits by top Portland commanders obtained by Oregon Live said demonstrations at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility were under control, and they made around two dozen arrests since a nightly encampment was erected during the summer.
Finding in favor of the plaintiffs, Immergut said that they provided “substantial evidence” that the protests at a Portland Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility were “not significantly violent or disruptive in the days — or even weeks — leading up to the President’s directive” to send troops to the city. While she acknowledged there were “sporadic events” that required police monitoring, overall, protests were “small and uneventful.”
“Furthermore, this country has a longstanding and foundational tradition of resistance to government overreach, especially in the form of military intrusion into civil affairs,” Immergut said.
Officials’ reactions to Portland ruling
In a statement after the Portland ruling, Mayor Keith Wilson called the judge’s decision “proof that Portlanders’ commitment to peaceful expression and civic unity truly matters.”
“We have not met aggression with aggression,” Wilson said. “We’ve stood firm, calm and grounded in our shared values and that is why this decision went our way. Portland has shown that peace is power.”
Tina Kotek said with the ruling, “the truth has prevailed.”
“While this ruling is only the first step, it’s a step in the right direction,” she said.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield said the order is a healthy check on the president.
“Our city is not ravaged, and there is no rebellion,” he said. “The president must demonstrate an actual threat based on real facts if he wants to put the National Guard on our streets. Members of the Oregon National Guard are not a tool for him to use as political theater.”
The Trump administration appealed Immergut’s ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, NBC News reported.
“President Trump exercised his lawful authority to protect federal assets and personnel in Portland following violent riots and attacks on law enforcement — we expect to be vindicated by a higher court,” spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement to the outlet.
