FLASH NEWS
Trump's use of the National Guard faces major legal challenges
2025-10-09 23:16:31 / BOTA
US President Donald Trump's decision to deploy National Guard troops to Democratic-led cities, against the wishes of local officials, will face two important legal tests on Thursday.
Court hearings will begin in Portland, Oregon, and Chicago, Illinois, where local leaders have sued the government, claiming that the use of the US military on civilian roads is unconstitutional.
The White House has defended the decision to deploy troops, with spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt stating: "We have full confidence in the president's legal authority to do this."
Trump has previously sent the National Guard to Los Angeles and Washington DC, arguing that the troops were needed to crack down on illegal immigration and crime.
He has also stated that the National Guard is necessary to protect federal immigration officers during deportation operations.
In Portland, protests outside an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) building have become increasingly tense, described by residents as a "war zone."
After Trump ordered the deployment of 200 Oregon National Guard troops in September, a judge temporarily blocked the move. When Trump later threatened to send troops from another state, the court expanded the order to block that move as well.
On Thursday, a three-judge panel on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments to decide whether to temporarily lift the lower court's blocking order banning the use of the Oregon Guard.
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told NBC News on Wednesday : “The Trump administration is committed to restoring law and order to American cities affected by violence due to Democratic mismanagement. And President Trump will not stand idly by while violent protesters attack federal law enforcement officers.”
But Oregon Governor Tina Kotek, a Democrat, said: "There is no insurrection in Portland, nor any threat to national security."
Meanwhile, federal judge April Perry in Illinois will hear arguments on Thursday on the government's attempt to send the National Guard to Chicago.
The city has been a flashpoint in the Trump administration's efforts to detain and deport undocumented immigrants, with reports that federal agents descended from Black Hawk helicopters during an operation and used tear gas against peaceful protesters.
During a protest, a woman was shot by a federal agent. Since then, hundreds of Texas National Guard troops have been deployed to the area.
The Illinois officials' lawsuit argues that the Trump administration's efforts are not only illegal, but also an attempt to create an artificial crisis by inciting civil unrest.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson told the BBC: "To pick National Guard people from another state, from Texas, and send them to Illinois, that's illegal, unconstitutional and dangerous."
Happening now...
ideas
top
Alfa recipes
TRENDING 
services
- POLICE129
- STREET POLICE126
- AMBULANCE112
- FIREFIGHTER128