Power Grab/Fire anyone who can stop him
Trump sent 200 National Guard troops to Portland, and a judge he appointed permanently blocked it
Judge Karin Immergut found after a trial that the president had no lawful basis to federalize Oregon’s Guard. Trump ended the Guard federalizations on December 31, 2025.
What happened
On September 27, 2025, Trump announced he would send troops to Portland, which he called “war ravaged,” over Governor Tina Kotek’s objection. A September 28 memo signed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth federalized 200 Oregon National Guard members under Title 10 for 60 days to protect ICE personnel. Oregon, California and the city sued.
Judge Karin Immergut, whom Trump appointed in 2019, issued restraining orders on October 4 and 5. The second, broader order came after the administration rerouted California and Texas Guard troops to Oregon. A Ninth Circuit panel sided with the administration on October 20, and the full court vacated that ruling on October 28.
On November 7, after a three-day trial, Immergut ruled in a 106-page opinion that the president “did not have a lawful basis to federalize the National Guard,” and permanently enjoined the deployment. The Federal Protective Service had reported 11 injuries in June, four in July, six in August and none in September. The government also corrected a sworn claim that 115 officers were sent; the number was 86.
Who benefited
The White House gained a test case for presidential authority to deploy the Guard over a governor’s objection, and a city to cast as lawless ahead of deployments in Chicago and elsewhere. Even blocked, the episode kept troops in cities on the agenda.
Who wanted something
Trump announced the deployment on social media, and Hegseth signed the federalization memo. The memo said it “further implements the President’s direction” from the June Los Angeles deployment.
Who lost out
Oregon’s elected government had its Guard taken from its control on a factual record the court found did not support it. Portland residents and protesters were exposed to tear gas and munitions at the ICE facility. Guard members were ordered into a mission a court found unlawful.
Why it matters
A judge chosen by Trump found, after a full trial, that the administration’s justification for putting soldiers in an American city did not match the facts. She also found that the government had overstated its own numbers to the court. On December 23, 2025, the Supreme Court’s order in Trump v. Illinois refused to let federalized troops deploy to Chicago.
Sources OPBU.S. District Court for Oregon (via OPB) (primary)Military TimesNPROregon Department of Justice (primary)