As the deployment of 200 National Guard troops to Portland has been postponed by “a couple of days”, former Republican Washington State Attorney General, Rob McKenna, said he won’t be surprised if a federal judge declares the deployment illegal before it happens.
The Oregon State Department of Military blamed the delay on “administrative tasks” that most likely include figuring out logistics like transportation to the ICE detention facility in S.W. Portland, housing, and food for the soldiers. There’s no word on whether the soldiers will be armed or not.
The lawsuit, filed last week by the Oregon State Attorney General and City of Portland in U.S. District Court in Oregon, claims the Trump Administration does not have the authority to deploy or send troops anywhere to conduct law enforcement operations. McKenna explained that attorneys must convince a judge that President Trump’s action violates an almost 150-year-old federal act that places limits on the use of U.S. military forces.
“In fact, it may violate a law called the Posse Comitatus Act, which expressly prohibits the use of troops for law enforcement purposes,” McKenna said.
Portland protests lead to Trump’s National Guard deployment
After weeks of sometimes violent exchanges between Homeland Security Officers, ICE Agents, and protestors that have involved the use of rubber bullets, pepper spray, and rock throwing, which have resulted in multiple injuries on both sides, Trump declared Portland a “war-ravaged” city that needed law and order.
Wednesday, on Truth Social, Trump seemed to up the ante on that rhetoric, saying Oregon Governor Tina Kotek was living in a “dream world.” He also labeled Portland a “never-ending disaster.”
However, the deployment delay has raised new questions about what exact duties National Guard troops will carry out in Portland. According to a National Guard spokesperson, the 200 troops have been undergoing training to learn “special rules for the use of force” they can and cannot use within U.S. borders. McKenna said what Trump hopes to accomplish remains murky.
“It isn’t clear what the President thinks he’s accomplishing here except he wants a crime-fighting role and he thinks this is the way to get it,” McKenna said. “In his first term, there were riots. I’ve heard speculation he regrets he didn’t take a stronger reaction at that time.”
So far, training costs for the guardsmen have reportedly reached $3.8 million. Governor Kotek has estimated final costs of their potential deployment could cost taxpayers more than $10 million.
Speaking to local media, a former Oregon Guardsman and Republican State Representative, Alex Skarlatos, said the troops will most likely focus on protecting federal property and ICE Agents coming and going from their facility.
“At the end of the day, it’s going to be a lot of peacekeeping, and I imagine their presence is going to try and tone down outside of the ICE facility in particular,” Skarlatos said.
Skarlatos, who served in Afghanistan, is also known for his role in stopping a terrorist attack on board a moving train from Amsterdam to Paris in 2015.
Previous judge ruled against Trump
On Monday, Oregon and Portland officials followed up their lawsuit with a motion for a temporary restraining order. While the case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Michael Simon, an Obama appointee, there’s no timeline for a ruling.
Earlier this month, a federal judge cited the Posse Comitatus Act in his ruling that the administration broke the law in its use of the military in Los Angeles. McKenna said that, in the Oregon suit, it might be clear which way the judge will rule during oral arguments.
“Sometimes the way a judge asks questions or makes statements, you can get a clue on how they’re going to rule,” McKenna explained. “The fact that Charles Brier in Southern California already ruled against the Administration on this question might also be a preview.”
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