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Former President Donald Trump has directed the deployment of U.S. troops to Portland, Oregon, authorizing the use of “full force” if deemed necessary.
Trump stated he was “directing Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland”.
He asserted the move was intended to protect “any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists,” adding on Truth Social: “I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary.”
The announcement has prompted opposition from Democratic lawmakers, who argue there is no justification for deploying federal troops to the city.
“There is no national security threat in Portland. Our communities are safe and calm,” Oregon Governor Tina Kotek said in a statement, adding that she has requested further information from the Trump administration.
Portland’s mayor Keith Wilson stated that the “number of necessary troops is zero, in Portland and any other American city”.
Saturday’s announcement signals a further expansion of troop deployments in American cities, amid a broader crackdown by the Trump administration on illegal immigration.
Trump’s post did not specify whether he intends to activate national guard or regular US military, nor did it define what is meant by the use of “full force”.
“We stand ready to mobilize U.S. military personnel in support of DHS operations in Portland at the President’s direction,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman, Sean Parnell told the BBC. “The Department will provide information and updates as they become available.”
The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland has been a focal point for protesters since early June, resulting in occasional violent confrontations.
As of September 8th, the U.S. Attorney’s Office had filed federal charges against 26 individuals for offenses including arson, assaulting a police officer, and resisting arrest.
On Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated that demonstrators had “repeatedly attacked and laid siege to an ICE processing centre” in Portland.
In a post on the social media platform X, the department stated that several individuals had been arrested and charged with federal offences.
“Rose City Antifa, a recently designated domestic terrorist organization, illegally doxed ICE officers. They published their home address online and on public flyers. Individuals associated with Antifa also sent death threats to DHS personnel,” DHS wrote on X.
Earlier this week, Trump signed an order formally designating antifa as a domestic terrorist organisation.
Antifa, short for “anti-fascist”, is a loosely organised movement of primarily far-left activists.
Legal experts have noted that there is no established legal mechanism in the U.S. to formally designate any group as a domestic terror organisation. They suggest that such efforts could face constitutional challenges under the First Amendment, which protects free speech and assembly.
Democratic lawmakers have voiced criticism of both the president’s rhetoric and the reported actions of ICE agents in the state.
Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon stated on Friday that there were “credible” reports that federal agents “may be replaying the 2020 playbook “, referencing the deployment of federal forces in response to protests against the murder of George Floyd.
“I urge Oregonians not to fall into Trump’s attempt to incite violence,” Wyden said.
Local lawmakers have also accused ICE of targeting individuals who do not pose a significant threat to society.
“ICE has said they’re targeting people for arrest and detainment who have committed crimes. That’s what they told us. But that’s not what we are seeing,” said Democratic house representative Suzanne Bonamici on Friday.
Lawmakers cited recent incidents, including the detention of a father outside his child’s preschool and a wildland firefighter who was arrested while battling fires in the Olympic National Forest.
They also pointed to a statistic published by the Cato Institute, a U.S. think tank based in Washington D.C., which reported that 65% of people detained by ICE had no criminal convictions.
Despite the criticism, the move has garnered support from some Republican officials.
U.S. labour secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said she had witnessed how “lawlessness” had transformed Portland into a “crime-ridden war zone”.
In a post on X, Chavez-DeRemer, who previously served as a Republican house representative for an Oregon district, thanked Trump “for taking action to keep our ICE facilities protected and Make America Great Again”.
Earlier this year, Trump deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and Memphis.
In Los Angeles, the president ordered 2,000 federal personnel to address unrest related to raids on undocumented migrants. Clashes occurred over several days, with tear gas being deployed to disperse protesting crowds.
A federal judge in California ruled earlier this month that the National Guard deployment to Los Angeles was illegal and violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts the federal government’s ability to use military force for domestic law enforcement.
It remains unclear whether the president possesses legal authority to deploy federal forces to Oregon.
The FBI Agents Association says the terminations – not yet confirmed by the bureau – violate the agents’ rights.
The Trump administration asks the court to clear the way for the order, which has faced a series of legal challenges.
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