Federal Judge Blocks Trump’s National Guard Deployment to Portland

In a stunning rebuke to President Donald Trump’s escalating efforts to militarize Democratic-led cities, a federal judge has temporarily halted the deployment of 200 Oregon National Guard troops to Portland. U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, appointed by Trump himself in 2019, issued the temporary restraining order (TRO) late on October 4, ruling that the president’s actions exceed his statutory and constitutional authority. The decision comes amid Trump’s portrayal of Portland as a “war-ravaged” city besieged by “domestic terrorists,” a characterization the judge dismissed as “simply untethered to the facts.”

The TRO, effective immediately, blocks the federalization of the Guard under a September 28 memorandum and is set to expire on October 18 unless extended. Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield and Portland city officials filed the lawsuit, arguing that the deployment violates the Tenth Amendment, federal statutes, and principles of federalism. They contended that local law enforcement, including the Portland Police Bureau’s 812 officers trained in crowd control and First Amendment protections, is fully capable of managing the situation without military intervention. Immergut agreed, noting that protests near the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility have been “small, contained, and largely peaceful.” Data from police reports show only 25 arrests between mid-June and June 19, with no further incidents until the deployment announcement, which itself sparked minor escalations.

Trump’s announcement on September 27 via Truth Social invoked authority to protect federal property from alleged “violent riots and attacks on law enforcement.” However, Immergut scrutinized the evidence, pointing out that the unrest does not meet the high threshold of a “rebellion” or inability of federal officials to execute laws, as required by the Insurrection Act and related statutes. She warned that approving such a move could lead to “unconstitutional military involvement in domestic affairs,” potentially violating the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits the military from domestic law enforcement. The judge also highlighted risks of escalation, referencing how past Guard deployments in Portland and Los Angeles inflamed tensions rather than resolving them.

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson fired back, stating Trump “exercised his lawful authority” and that the administration expects reversal by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where it has already filed an appeal. Rayfield celebrated the ruling as a victory for state sovereignty, declaring Portland is not in “rebellion” and rejecting the Guard’s use for “political theater.” The ACLU of Oregon echoed this, praising the decision as aligned with “the law and the facts on the ground.”

This ruling fits a pattern of judicial pushback against Trump’s National Guard strategy in blue cities. In June, a San Francisco judge deemed the deployment of 4,700 troops to Los Angeles illegal under Posse Comitatus, though an appeals panel paused that block. Similar challenges loom in Chicago, where Trump ordered 300 Illinois Guard members despite Gov. JB Pritzker’s opposition, and Memphis, where the governor supports it. Immergut differentiated Portland’s “categorically different” situation from Los Angeles, emphasizing no widespread disruption to federal functions.

On X, reactions poured in swiftly. Conservative users decried the judge as activist, calling for Supreme Court intervention, while progressives hailed it as a bulwark against authoritarianism. Posts highlighted the irony of a Trump appointee blocking him, with one viral tweet stating, “This is a nation of constitutional law, not martial law.”

As the appeal process unfolds, the ruling underscores tensions between federal power and local control. Protests at the ICE facility, focused on immigration policies, continue nightly but remain manageable, with federal agents already present. Legal experts predict this could influence ongoing cases, reinforcing limits on presidential military deployments. For now, Portland breathes easier, but the broader battle over Trump’s “law and order” agenda rages on in courts and streets nationwide.