Hundreds of US troops moved to Portland in defiance of court order
Illustrative photo: US troops (Getty Images)
Hundreds of federal National Guard personnel from California are being transferred from the Los Angeles area to Portland to implement plans announced by US President Donald Trump, according to Reuters.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said that, under the president’s directive, about 200 federal personnel of the California National Guard are being redeployed from the Greater Los Angeles area to Portland, Oregon.
"Approximately 200 federalized members of the California National Guard are being reassigned from duty in the greater Los Angeles area to Portland, Oregon, to support US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal personnel performing official duties, including the enforcement of federal law, and to protect federal property," the statement read.
Deployment of troops in Portland
In September, mass protests erupted in Portland, Oregon, over the Trump administration’s hardline immigration policies and the actions of ICE toward foreign nationals residing in the United States.
On September 27, the president ordered troops into Portland to counter what he called “domestic terrorists,” referring to members of the left-wing Antifa movement. One of its participants had recently been involved in the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.
On October 2, Trump stated that local law enforcement had failed to maintain order in the city, calling the situation "lawless chaos." He then instructed the deployment of several hundred National Guard soldiers to protect federal buildings in Portland.
On October 5, a court temporarily barred the president from deploying Oregon National Guard servicemembers to the city, with a federal judge ruling that there was no evidence the recent protests required such action.
It is worth noting that the announcement of the transfer of 200 California National Guard troops came after the federal court’s decision.
