Trump permits ‘complete power’ as Portland turns into the newest city to witness the deployment of troops

President Donald Trump has initiated the deployment of US military forces to Portland, Oregon, granting permission for “full force” if necessary, to quell demonstrations aimed at immigration detainment facilities.

Trump stated that he was “instructing Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to allocate all required troops to safeguard war-torn Portland.”

He asserted that this action would help defend “any of our ICE Facilities under attack from Antifa and other home-grown terrorists,” adding on Truth Social: “I am also permitting Full Force, if necessary.”

This announcement faced opposition from Democratic lawmakers, who contended that there was no justification for federal troops to be sent to the city.

“There is no national security risk in Portland. Our neighborhoods are secure and peaceful,” remarked Oregon Governor Tina Kotek.

At a press briefing on Saturday, Kotek stated that “any deployment would constitute an abuse of power”, and that she was working with Oregon’s attorney general, Dan Rayfield, “to determine if any action is warranted”.

“We will be ready to act if necessary,” Kotek remarked.

Saturday’s announcement signifies an escalation in the deployment of forces in American cities, amidst a broader crackdown by the Trump administration on unlawful immigration.

Trump’s message does not clarify whether he plans to activate the national guard or regular US military. The statement also lacks clarity on what “full force” entails.

“We are prepared to deploy U.S. military personnel to support DHS operations in Portland at the President’s instruction,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell informed the BBC. “The Department will provide updates as information becomes available.”

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland has faced protests since early June, which have occasionally escalated into violent confrontations.

As of 8 September, the US Attorney’s Office had filed federal charges against 26 individuals for offenses such as arson, assaulting an officer, and resisting arrest.

On Friday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reported that demonstrators had “consistently attacked and besieged an ICE processing facility” in Portland.

In a statement on the social media platform X, the department mentioned that several individuals had been apprehended and charged with federal crimes.

“Rose City Antifa, a recently classified domestic terrorist entity, unlawfully revealed personal information of ICE officers, publishing their addresses online and on public flyers. Individuals associated with Antifa also issued death threats to DHS staff,” DHS stated on X.

Earlier this week, Trump enacted an order officially categorizing antifa as a domestic terrorist organization.

Antifa, which stands for “anti-fascist,” is a loosely organized collective of primarily far-left activists.

Legal analysts have noted that there is no legal framework in the United States that would officially categorize any group as a domestic terrorist organization. Such initiatives, they indicated, might encounter constitutional challenges under the First Amendment, which safeguards free speech and assembly.

Democratic lawmakers have condemned both the president’s statements and the reported conduct of ICE agents in the area.

Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon stated on Friday that there were “credible” allegations that federal agents “might be reviving the 2020 strategy,” referring to the deployment of federal forces in reaction to protests following the death of George Floyd, a Black man who perished while in police custody.

“I encourage Oregonians not to succumb to Trump’s efforts to provoke violence,” Wyden stated.

Local lawmakers have also charged ICE with pursuing individuals who do not pose an actual threat to the community.

“ICE has claimed that they are focusing on individuals for detention and arrest who have committed crimes. That’s their assertion. However, that is not what we are witnessing,” remarked Democratic representative Suzanne Bonamici on Friday.

Lawmakers referenced recent instances, including the arrest of a father outside his child’s preschool and a wildland firefighter who was detained while fighting fires in the Olympic National Forest.

They also highlighted a statistic released by the Cato Institute, a Washington DC-based think tank, which indicated that 65% of people apprehended by ICE had no criminal history.

Notwithstanding the criticism from Democrats, the action has garnered support from some Republican officials.

US labor secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer stated she had observed how “lawlessness” had transformed Portland into a “crime-infested war zone.”

In a statement on X, Chavez-DeRemer, who previously served as a Republican house representative for an Oregon district, expressed gratitude to Trump “for taking steps to ensure the protection of our ICE facilities and Make America Great Again.”

Earlier this year, Trump sent the National Guard to Los Angeles and Washington DC, and federal agents are anticipated to arrive in Memphis next week.

In Los Angeles, the president deployed 2,000 federal personnel to manage unrest surrounding raids on undocumented migrants. Clashes occurred over several days, with tear gas deployed to disperse protesting crowds.

A federal judge in California ruled earlier this month that the deployment of the National Guard to Los Angeles was unlawful and violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts the federal government’s ability to use military force for domestic purposes.

It remains uncertain whether the president possesses a legal basis to dispatch federal forces to Oregon.