PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An appeals court on Monday put on hold a lower court ruling that kept President Donald Trump from taking command of 200 Oregon National Guard troops. However, Trump is still barred from actually deploying those troops, at least for now.
U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut had issued two temporary restraining orders early this month prohibiting Trump from both calling up troops and sending any National Guard members to Oregon after he attempted to bypass the order by deploying California troops instead.
The Justice Department appealed the first order, and in a 2-1 ruling Monday, a panel from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the administration, stating that the president likely possesses the authority to federalize the troops based on precedents that suggest he is unable to enforce laws without them.
Despite this ruling, Immergut's second order remains in effect, thus preventing immediate troop deployment. The administration plans to request Immergut dissolve her second order, stating the courts should not challenge the president's assessment of military deployments.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield indicated he would pursue a broader panel of appeals judges to review the decision, commenting, “Today’s ruling, if allowed to stand, would give the president unilateral power to put Oregon soldiers on our streets with almost no justification.”
Rayfield expressed concerns about a dangerous precedent for presidential power and civil liberties if such unilateral military authority is permitted.
This recent development in Oregon follows a pattern of Trump’s legal battles over deploying National Guard troops amidst civil unrest, particularly involving protests related to law enforcement practices. A California judge previously ruled that Trump's deployment of thousands of Guardsmen in Los Angeles violated the Posse Comitatus Act, limiting military involvement in civilian policing.
As protests have predominantly remained small, with limited disturbances outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland, the administration argues that troop presence is necessary to protect federal property amid ongoing demonstrations. Trump’s claims, however, have been met with skepticism, as previous rulings indicated his characterizations of the protests were often exaggerated.
