President Donald Trump has ordered the deployment of US troops to Portland, Oregon, authorising the use of what he called “full force” if necessary.
Trump said he was “directing Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.” He added that the measure was aimed at safeguarding “any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”
The announcement, made on Truth Social, drew swift criticism from Oregon officials and Democratic lawmakers, who rejected claims that the city was under threat. “There is no national security threat in Portland. Our communities are safe and calm,” Governor Tina Kotek said in a statement, adding that she had asked the administration for more details.
Portland’s mayor Keith Wilson said the “number of necessary troops is zero, in Portland and any other American city.” Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon accused Trump of “replaying the 2020 playbook,” warning residents not to fall for what he described as an attempt “to incite violence.”
The Pentagon indicated readiness to support Trump’s directive but did not specify whether the troops would come from the National Guard or the regular military. “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 of Homeland Security said its Portland facility had come under repeated attack from demonstrators. In a post on X, the agency alleged that “Rose City Antifa, a recently designated domestic terrorist organization, illegally doxed ICE officers” and that some individuals had sent death threats to federal personnel. Earlier this week, Trump signed an order designating Antifa as a domestic terrorist organisation, although legal experts argue that US law provides no mechanism for such a designation.
Democratic lawmakers have also criticised federal agents’ reported tactics. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici said ICE was not focusing on dangerous offenders, citing cases where a parent was detained outside a preschool and a firefighter arrested while battling wildfires. A Cato Institute study cited by lawmakers found that 65% of ICE detainees had no criminal convictions.
Republican officials, however, defended Trump’s move. US labour secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer described Portland as a “crime-ridden war zone” and thanked Trump “for taking action to keep our ICE facilities protected and Make America Great Again.”
The deployment follows earlier troop mobilisations this year in Los Angeles, Washington DC and Memphis, which led to violent clashes. A federal judge later ruled that the Los Angeles deployment violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts domestic use of the military. Whether Trump has legal authority to send troops to Oregon remains uncertain.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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