WASHINGTON- A federal judge on Saturday temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s order deploying 200 Oregon National Guard troops to Portland, ruling that the move likely exceeded his constitutional and statutory authority.
In a sweeping 31-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Karin J. Immergut, a Trump-appointed judge, granted Oregon and the City of Portland a temporary restraining order halting the federalization and deployment of Guard members ordered by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Sept. 28.
The judge found that Trump’s order, issued amid largely peaceful protests near a local Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility, was “untethered to the facts” and violated both federal law and the Tenth Amendment.
The dispute centers on a June 7 presidential memorandum that broadly authorized the use of National Guard troops nationwide to protect federal personnel and property during protests.
While earlier deployments in California followed violent clashes, Immergut wrote that conditions in Portland by late September were markedly calm — with “around twenty or fewer” protesters outside the ICE facility and no major violence reported for weeks.
The President, however, publicly described Portland as “war ravaged” and directed the use of “full force” to quell what he called “Antifa and other domestic terrorists.” His social media posts, Immergut wrote, “were simply untethered to the facts on the ground.”
Oregon Governor Tina Kotek had refused to activate the Guard voluntarily, telling federal officials there was “no insurrection or threat to public safety.” Nevertheless, Hegseth ordered the troops into federal service under Title 10 of the U.S. Code — a move the state and city argued was unlawful.
Judge Immergut agreed, finding that none of the statutory conditions allowing federalization of state troops — invasion, rebellion, or inability of regular forces to enforce federal law — were met. “Violence elsewhere cannot support troop deployments here,” she wrote. “Concern about hypothetical future conduct does not demonstrate a present inability to execute the laws.”
The court also held that the order infringed on Oregon’s state sovereignty, violating the Tenth Amendment, and warned of the “foundational tradition” against military involvement in civil law enforcement. “This is a nation of Constitutional law, not martial law,” Immergut wrote.
The temporary restraining order will remain in effect until Oct. 18, pending further proceedings. The Justice Department had urged the court to defer to the President’s national security judgment, but the request to stay the order was denied.
The ruling marks a rare judicial rebuke of presidential authority over the National Guard and echoes similar legal battles in California earlier this year.
