California and Oregon Challenge Trump's National Guard Deployment to Portland in Federal Lawsuit

Oregon officials and Portland residents have categorically rejected the characterization of their city as "war-ravaged."

President Donald Trump is deploying California National Guard members to Oregon after a judge temporarily blocked his administration from sending Oregon's own guard to Portland. The Democratic governors of both states announced Sunday their intention to challenge this move in court.

According to a Pentagon spokesperson, approximately 200 federalized members of the California National Guard who were previously stationed around Los Angeles are being reassigned to Portland. Oregon Governor Tina Kotek confirmed that about 100 arrived Saturday with another 100 en route Sunday.

Kotek noted there had been no formal communication from the federal government regarding this deployment. California Governor Gavin Newsom's office indicated that potentially 300 previously federalized California guard members could eventually be deployed.

This development in Oregon follows a similar announcement from Illinois' governor about troops in his state being activated.

Kotek characterized the federal officials' latest action as an attempt to circumvent Saturday's court ruling that blocked deployment of Oregon's own guard members.

"The facts on the ground in Oregon haven't changed," Kotek stated during a Sunday news conference. "There's no need for military intervention in Oregon. There's no insurrection in Portland, there's no threat to national security."

Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield announced that his state, along with Portland and California, is pursuing an amended temporary restraining order against the deployment of any National Guard troops.

"What was unlawful yesterday is unlawful today," Rayfield declared. "The judge's order was not some minor procedural point for the president to work around, like my 14-year-old does when he doesn't like my answers."

Rayfield emphasized that Oregon "will absolutely not be a party to the president's attempt to normalize the use of the United States military in our American cities."

Governor Newsom said in a statement that California personnel were en route Sunday and described the deployment as "a breathtaking abuse of the law and power." He explained these troops were "federalized" and placed under presidential control months ago despite his objections, in response to unrest in Los Angeles.

"The commander-in-chief is using the U.S. military as a political weapon against American citizens," Newsom stated.

California has joined Oregon's lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's deployment of National Guard personnel to Portland as unlawful and unnecessary overreach.

According to the amended complaint filed Sunday, three hundred California National Guard personnel deployed in southern California had already been federalized until early November, and leaders of the California Military Department learned that all 300 "will be imminently deployed to Portland."

Sunday's court filing argued that Trump deployed California National Guard troops to Los Angeles in June to enforce immigration law and has no legal grounds to redeploy them to Oregon for another purpose.

"They cannot continue to hold the federalized National Guard members hostage by altering their mission and sending them to another State," the filing stated.

The lawsuit notes that presidential authority to deploy National Guard troops is limited to specific circumstances: repelling an invasion, suppressing a rebellion, or enforcing federal laws.

"There is no rebellion in Portland," the filing emphasized.

In a related court filing, an attorney in the California Military Department said the U.S. Army Northern Command advised the department on Sunday that an order will be issued extending the federalization of the 300 guard personnel through January's end.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland has recently been the site of nightly protests. A Trump-appointed federal judge in Oregon on Saturday temporarily blocked the administration's plan to deploy the Oregon National Guard in Portland to protect federal property after Trump characterized the city as "war-ravaged."

Oregon officials and Portland residents unanimously rejected that description. The protest was relatively small and confined to just one block of the city of 650,000 residents, Governor Kotek pointed out.

U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, appointed by Trump during his first term, issued the order pending further arguments in the lawsuit brought by the state and city. She determined the relatively small protests did not justify federalized forces and allowing the deployment could undermine Oregon's state sovereignty.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta asserted the president is "specifically targeting cities that lean Democratic" or have leaders and residents who speak out against the administration's abuses of power.

"It's our National Guard, California's National Guard, not Trump's Royal Guard, as he seems to think," Bonta remarked during a Sunday evening news conference. "Trump can't use our military troops as his own personal police force."

Portland Mayor Keith Wilson reported Sunday that he witnessed federal agents engaging in what he described as unjustified use of force and indiscriminately spraying pepper spray and impact munitions during a protest outside the ICE facility.

"This is an aggressive approach trying to inflame the situation that has otherwise been peaceful," Wilson stated.

Wilson confirmed that Portland has alerted the civil rights division of the Department of Justice to the agents' actions.

Trump has portrayed both Portland and Chicago as cities plagued by crime and unrest. Since beginning his second term, he has sent or discussed sending troops to 10 cities.

Trump authorized the deployment of 300 Illinois National Guard troops to protect federal officers and assets in Chicago on Saturday.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker's office stated the situation in Chicago "does not require the use of the military and, as a result, the Governor opposes the deployment of the national guard under any status." Pritzker's office noted he received no calls from federal officials regarding the deployment.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)