Judge temporarily blocks Trump's National Guard deployment in Portland
A federal judge in Oregon has granted a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration from deploying the National Guard into Portland after the president announced he would send introops to protectwhat he calls a "war-ravaged" city. The ruling by the Trump-nominated judge marks the latest setback to White Houseefforts to crack downon Democratic-led cities it claims are stricken by crime and disorder, often in part by citing the need to protect ICE facilities from riotous protesters. District Judge Karin Immergut found that Oregon and the city of Portland "are likely to succeed on their claim that the President exceeded his constitutional authority and violated the Tenth Amendment," Immergut's opinion reads. Recent incidents cited by the Trump administration of protesters clashing with federal officers, "are inexcusable, but they are nowhere near the type of incidents that cannot be handled by regular law enforcement forces," the judge said. The Trump administration "made a range of arguments that, if accepted, risk blurring the line between civil and military federal power—to the detriment of this nation," the judge wrote. The temporary restraining order expires in 14 days on October 18. The state plans to request an extension, according to Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield. The administration had called for the federalization of 200 members of Oregon's National Guard, who officials had previously said were still training as of Friday evening and not in Portland. The order places the National Guard back under the command of Gov. Tina Kotek, Rayfield said. State and city officials on Saturday night applauded the judge's decision, saying it reaffirms there was no rebellion in the city or significant disruption in the weeks leading up to the administration's directive. "Today's ruling is a healthy check on the president's power, and as the president, you must have actual facts based on reality, not social media or just your gut feeling, if you want to mobilize the military," Rayfield said at a news conference. Oregon's governor called the judge's decision a "a step in the right direction." "We would hope that President Trump respects the court decision and the rule of law," Kotek said. "We would hope he reverses course." CNN has reached out to the White House for comment. The Trump administration has been pointing to renewed unrest in both Portland and Chicago to justify a deployment of federal troops to the two Democrat-led cities, seizing on new rounds of protests and the recent arrest of aconservative influencer. President Donald Trump has authorized 300 members of the Illinois National Guard to "protect federal officers and assets" in Chicago, the White House said, after protests at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility near the city led to more than a dozen arrests on Friday. Here's what else we know about the situations in the two cities. Oregon and Portland officials jointly sued the administration this week after President Donald Trump announced he would send the National Guard to protect the city. The state says the order is illegal and has called the president's portrayal of the city "wildly hyperbolic." "I've said from the very beginning the number of federal troops that are needed or wanted is zero," Portland Mayor Keith Wilson said at a Saturday news conference. The president and his administration have cited weekslong demonstrations outside the Portland ICE facility, framing them as "violent riots" tied to "Antifa domestic terrorists." Local officials dispute that characterization, claiming in the lawsuit that protests were small until Trump's National Guard announcement brought renewed attention to them. On Friday, Judge Immergut heard nearly two hours of testimony over the legality of a possible National Guard deployment to the city. US Deputy Assistant Attorney General Eric Hamilton cited a variety of incidents he said make the National Guard deployment necessary. Hamilton accused demonstrators of blocking the entrance to the ICE facility, following ICE agents home and throwing incendiary devices, rocks and bricks at law enforcement. The facility closed for three weeks over the summer "because of the violence," he said. CNN has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and ICE for more details on the facility closure. But Caroline Turco, an attorney for the city of Portland, said what ultimately is happening in Portland is a "perception versus reality problem." "The president's perception is it's World War II out here. The reality is, it's a beautiful city and a sophisticated police force that can handle the situation," Turco said. Judge Immergut on Saturday sided with the Oregon attorneys, saying they've shown "substantial evidence that the protests at the Portland ICE facility were not significantly violent" leading up to the president's directive. Oregon state attorneys also argued the use of Oregon's National Guard for civilian law enforcement does not fall within thenarrow circumstances– including "rebellion" or invasion by a foreign nation – under which the president has the power to call state troops into federal action. Federal law also orders this type of action tobe madethrough state governors. Gov. Kotek has fiercelyopposed the deployment. In her opinion Saturday, Immergut said the President was federalizing the Oregon National Guard "absent constitutional authority" and protests in Portland "did not pose a 'danger of a rebellion'" During the hearing Friday, the judge had asked the federal government lawyers whether Trump's use of his Truth Social platform to announce a Portland military operation constituted an official executive action. "A social media post is going to count as a presidential determination that you can send the National Guard to cities? I mean is that really what I should be relying on?" Immergut asked the defense. "These posts reflect his decision-making which Secretary Hegseth carried out," the federal government's lawyer responded. Oregon Attorney General Rayfield said using social media was "very fitting" with the administration's previous actions. "A court of law is meant to be based in fact, not on social media trolling and gossip, and so I thought it was…very illustrative for this administration to quote social media as facts to a judge," Rayfield said. Protests have continued outside the ICE facility in Portland this week, with Trump officials promising a surge of federal resources to the city and the DOJ launching an investigation into "potential viewpoint discrimination" by Portland police after the arrest ofNick Sortor, a 27-year-old conservative influencer, during protests. Trump's attempted crackdown in Portland follows similar efforts in Washington, DC, Los Angeles and Memphis – an effort met with impassioned pushback from Democratic leaders nationwide who argue the moves are politically motivated and lack justification. Last month, afederal judge in California ruledthat the Trump administration broke the law when it deployed thousands of federalized National Guard soldiers andhundreds of Marinesto suppress protests against ICE actions in Los Angeles. The decision barred troops from carrying out law enforcement in the state, but the White House has appealed the decision. Judge Immergut in her opinion said incidents in Portland are "categorically different" from the violence seen in Los Angeles when the president federalized troops there. "Neither outside the Portland ICE facility nor elsewhere in the City of Portland was there unlawful activity akin to what was occurring in Los Angeles leading up to June 7, 2025," the judge wrote. The temporary restraining order for Portland could potentially be extended at a hearing on October 17, Rayfield told CNN Saturday night. The judge could then issue a preliminary injunction at a merits hearing set for October 29. Oregon officials say there's a possibility the Trump administration will appeal the decision and seek a stay of the temporary restraining order as the case makes its way through the judicial system. The administration sought a stay of the temporary restraining order in California's National Guardcourt battlein June. Rayfield said it's too early to tell how Saturday's ruling in Portland might impact how National Guard cases unfold in other states. "All of these cases are very factually dependent," he said. "The facts in each jurisdiction will control on how the judge will rule in each jurisdiction." Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Saturday expressed outrage over the plans to federalize 300 troops "in the coming hours." "This morning, the Trump Administration's Department of War gave me an ultimatum: call up your troops, or we will. It is absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand a Governor send military troops within our own borders and against our will," Pritzker said in a statement. The governor said "there is no need for military troops on the ground in the State of Illinois." CNN has reached out to the Department of Defense for more information. The White House accused local leaders, including Pritzker, of refusing to quell "ongoing violent riots and lawlessness" in the state. Protests near Chicago have grown increasingly tense since beginning weeks ago – after localleaders got wordthat "a large-scale enforcement campaign" would soon be underway in the Windy City as part of the Trump's sweeping immigrationagenda. Officers in Chicago opened fire Saturday on an armed US citizenwho allegedly tried to run them over when they exited their vehicle after they were rammed by vehicles and boxed in by at least 10 cars, according to DHS. No officers were seriously hurt in the incident, officials said. On Friday, thelatest round of protestsoutside an ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois, resulted in the arrests of at least 18 people, as tensions over federal involvement in the state were set in relief by a visit from Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. And in a separate incident that day, Alderperson Jessie Fuentes said she was handcuffed by agents for a brief period of time at a hospital in Chicago after getting a call about ICE officers at the emergency room and a detainee with a leg injury. Fuentes said she asked the officers if they have a warrant, and, "Not only do they refuse to respond, but they respond with violence by shoving me in the emergency room." Tricia McLaughlin, DHS assistant secretary, told CNN Friday that a detainee who complained of a leg injury was taken to the hospital for treatment and "nearly 30 protesters, attempted to break into where the detainee was receiving medical care." Asweeping overnight raidcarried out by federal authorities at a Chicago apartment building earlier this week has also drawn condemnation. The multiagency operation led to the arrest of 37 undocumented immigrants – but also left the building's tenants and neighbors shaken. Adults and children alike were pulled from their apartments, crying and screaming, during the raid, which one neighbor characterized as a military-style "invasion." CNN's Whitney Wild, Dalia Faheid, Bill Kirkos, Alejandra Jaramillo, Zoe Sottile and Sarah Dewberry contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com
Judge temporarily blocks Trump's National Guard deployment in Portland A federal judge in Oregon has granted a temporary restraining ord...
