Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield announced today that the State of Oregon and the City of Portland are amending their lawsuit and filing a motion for another temporary restraining order (TRO) against President Donald Trump and federal officials. The amended complaint adds the State of California as a party to the lawsuit. Today’s TRO motion asks the district court to immediately block the President’s unlawful decision to deploy federalized members of the California National Guard to Oregon.
The amended complaint comes less than 24 hours after U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut granted Oregon’s request for a TRO blocking the President from federalizing and deploying Oregon National Guard troops to Portland.
Despite that unequivocal ruling Saturday night, less than 12 hours later, 100 federalized service members of the California National Guard were deployed from the Joint Forces Training Base in Los Alamitos, California, to Oregon. An additional 100 are reportedly preparing to follow.
“These actions are a direct attempt to circumvent the court’s order,” said Attorney General Rayfield. “Yesterday, the court laid out a clear, thoughtful opinion affirming that the President cannot federalize Oregon’s Guard to send troops into our own cities. Less than a day later, he’s continuing his attempts to militarize Portland, this time with members of the California National Guard, under the same law the judge just said doesn’t apply. Not only does Portland not need this interference, but the President is abusing his authority over the California National Guard, because he committed to use their capacity to keep California safe. He can’t be trusted.”
“The Trump Administration claimed that California National Guard troops were urgently needed to maintain peace in Los Angeles — yet it is sending the entirety of the remaining troops to Oregon without hesitation,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “This is a blatant and disrespectful ploy to do an end run around yesterday’s order by a district court blocking the illegal federalization of the Oregon National Guard. Along with Attorney General Rayfield, I’m suing to prevent this latest overreach of executive power. The President cannot use our cities as a training ground for the military — and he certainly cannot use the hardworking members of California’s National Guard as his personal police force.”
The court granted Oregon’s original TRO on Saturday night, writing in its ruling that “the issues in this case go to the heart of what it means to live under the rule of law in the United States.”
“The President is ignoring that principle — and the court — by trying to play a shell game with troops,” Rayfield continued. “There’s no rebellion, no foreign invasion, no justification for sending in federalized forces. Portlanders are running the Portland Marathon today, cheering each other on, living their lives peacefully. That’s the real Oregon. What’s happening here is a political stunt that puts our neighbors and family members in harm’s way.”
The amended complaint, filed today before Judge Immergut, seeks a new TRO to block the deployment of California National Guard members to Oregon.
The State of Oregon, the City of Portland, and the State of California are jointly requesting an immediate telephonic hearing with the court this afternoon or evening.
Attorney General Rayfield added, “Attorney General Bonta and his team have been engaged, responsive, and proactive every step of the way – it’s a strong partnership for defending the rule of law.”
BACKGROUND:
- On October 4, Judge Karin Immergut granted Oregon’s request for a Temporary Restraining Order blocking President Trump’s attempt to federalize and deploy 200 Oregon National Guard troops to Portland under 10 U.S.C. § 12406.
- On October 5, approximately 100 federalized members of the California National Guard were deployed from Los Alamitos, California, to Portland, Oregon, under the same statute, with up to 200 more California National Guard troops to follow.
- The Oregon Department of Justice is now seeking an emergency hearing for a new TRO to block these new deployments.
