Pentagon Deploys 200 National Guard Troops to Portland Following Presidential Directive
The Pentagon has deployed 200 Oregon National Guard troops under federal authority following President Trump’s announcement to send military personnel to Portland. The decision coincides with a legal challenge filed by the state of Oregon, which contests the federal deployment in the city.
President Trump stated that the troops would be tasked with protecting federal immigration facilities, citing threats from “domestic terrorists.” He further emphasised that the forces had been authorised to use “full force, if necessary.”
The deployment marks the latest in a series of federal military mobilisations to cities governed by Democratic administrations. Similar actions in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. have prompted protests and legal challenges in recent months.
Oregon’s lawsuit, submitted in federal court on Sunday by State Attorney General Dan Rayfield, names the President, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem as defendants. The suit alleges an overreach of federal authority, asserting that the state’s sovereign right to manage its law enforcement and National Guard resources has been violated.
“Citing nothing more than baseless, wildly hyperbolic pretext — the President says Portland is a ‘War ravaged’ city ‘under siege’ from ‘domestic terrorists.’ Defendants have thus infringed on Oregon’s sovereign power to manage its own law enforcement activity and National Guard resource,” the lawsuit states.
According to the filing, demonstrations outside the Portland Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility have remained limited in size and scope since June.
Multiple defence officials indicated that the order to deploy troops came unexpectedly. On Sunday, Secretary Hegseth issued a memorandum authorising the deployment, which was included as an exhibit in the state’s court filing. The Pentagon has not provided an official statement on the matter.
“Sending in 200 National Guard troops to guard a single building is not normal,”
Rayfield said in a public statement, referring to the ICE facility in question.
Preliminary data from the Major Cities Chiefs Association’s Midyear Violent Crime Report indicates that Portland has experienced a significant decline in violent crime in 2025. Homicides have fallen by 51% in the first six months of the year compared to the same period in 2024.
Since taking office in January, President Trump has prioritised crime and public safety as key components of his administration’s domestic agenda, despite broader national trends showing decreasing violent crime rates in numerous cities.
Portland has a history of protest activity, particularly following the killing of George Floyd in 2020. Federal deployments during that period were met with sustained demonstrations, with some local officials arguing that the presence of federal troops contributed to, rather than calmed, civil unrest.
It remains unclear whether the President’s reference to “full force” implies authorisation for lethal measures, and under what legal parameters such force could be used. U.S. military personnel operating domestically are permitted to use force only in self-defence.
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson, along with other state and local leaders, reportedly learned of the federal deployment through social media channels on Saturday. According to defence officials, the decision came as a surprise within the Pentagon.
“It was a bolt from the blue,” said one official, noting that prior planning had focused on potential deployments to other cities such as Chicago and Memphis.
The situation unfolds amid heightened tensions surrounding immigration enforcement nationwide. The deployment follows a recent incident at a federal immigration facility in Dallas, where a shooting left one detainee dead and two others seriously injured.
