Oregon sues Trump administration over plans to send troops to Portland
Source: CBS News
September 28, 2025 / 5:35 PM EDT
The state of Oregon has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration after the president said he will send troops to Portland, state Attorney General Dan Rayfield announced Sunday.
It comes after Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth sent a memo to Gov. Tina Kotek authorizing 200 members of the Oregon National Guard to the city of Portland, Rayfield said in a news release. The troops are to be deployed for 60 days to protect federal property "where protests are occurring or likely to occur," he said.
The lawsuit argued that Mr. Trump lacks authority to federalize the National Guard. California filed a similar lawsuit in June after the administration sent troops to Los Angeles. "Oregon communities are stable, and our local officials have been clear: we have the capacity to manage public safety without federal interference," Rayfield in a statement.
"Sending in 200 National Guard troops to guard a single building is not normal. If you had a concern about safety at your own home, you'd make a few calls and fill the gaps — not call in an army. What we're seeing is not about public safety, it's about the President flexing political muscle under the guise of law and order, chasing a media hit at the expense of our community."
Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/oregon-sues-trump-over-federal-troops-deployment/
Link to SUIT (PDF) - https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26159474-stateandcityofportland/
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"stated basis for federalizing members of Oregon’s National Guard is patently pretextual"
"violates the Posse Comitatus Act"
"violate[s] the Tenth Amendment’s guarantee that the police power ... resides with the states"
