Trump weighs invoking Insurrection Act to send federal troops to Portland

President Donald Trump on Monday said he is considering invoking the Insurrection Act to justify sending federal troops into Portland, Oregon, amid ongoing protests and clashes between local officials and federal authorities.

In remarks from the Oval Office, Trump described the situation in Portland as “an insurrection,” though he noted that no final decision had been made.

“Portland is on fire. Portland’s been on fire for years,” Trump said. “It’s all insurrection.”

The president said he would invoke the 1807 law only “if it was necessary.”

“So far, it hasn’t been necessary,” Trump said. “But we have an Insurrection Act for a reason. If people were being killed, and courts were holding us up or governors or mayors were holding us up, sure, I’d do that. I mean, I want to make sure people aren’t killed.”

Trump also criticized ongoing legal and political resistance from state and local officials, saying their efforts to block federal involvement amounted to “criminal insurrection.”

Portland has become a flashpoint for the administration in recent months, as protests against immigration enforcement and deportation policies have continued since June. The FBI’s Portland field office said last week it had made 128 arrests in the city since June 9.

A federal judge, U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut — a Trump appointee — temporarily blocked the administration late Sunday from deploying National Guard troops to Oregon. Immergut previously granted state officials a restraining order preventing Trump from directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to deploy the Oregon National Guard to Portland.

Following that ruling, the administration attempted to send California National Guard troops to the city, prompting swift opposition from California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D).

The Insurrection Act, last invoked in 1992 during the Los Angeles riots, allows a president to deploy active-duty military forces within the United States to quell civil unrest. While invoking it could give Trump authority to bypass some legal restrictions, such a move would likely draw intense backlash and raise constitutional concerns about the use of military force in domestic affairs.

Meanwhile, tensions over federal deployments are spreading beyond Oregon. Earlier Monday, the state of Illinois and the city of Chicago filed suit to block the administration’s plan to send National Guard members there after reports emerged that hundreds of troops were being readied for deployment.

The escalating confrontation highlights the widening rift between the Trump administration and local governments over the federal response to ongoing protests and public unrest.