Updated September 27, 2025 at 3:48 PM PDT
President Trump said on Saturday he's ordered the deployment of troops to Portland, Ore., describing the city as "war ravaged," as he continues to push for the use of military force in states he purports are plagued with crime.
Trump said the Defense Department, which he referred to as the "Department of War," would send troops to the city to safeguard ICE detention facilities.
"I am directing Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland, and any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists," Trump wrote in the post. "I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary."
Earlier this week, a gunman who federal authorities said sought to 'terrorize' ICE workers carried out a deadly attack at a detention facility in Dallas, Texas, killing one detainee. The incident is still under investigation.
Last week, Trump signed an executive order designating antifa — not an organization but a decentralized network of antifascist activists — a domestic terrorist organization, though there is no such classification under U.S. law.
The president's directive comes amid a reported influx of federal officials in Portland. Local officials, meanwhile, dispute Trump's claims that the city is unsafe and are urging residents to remain peaceful.
The White House did not immediately return NPR's request for comment.
A U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly tells NPR the Pentagon has not issued a deployment order for troops to head to Portland and that the Pentagon only learned of Trump's request from the media. The official said it's likely that National Guard troops would be used.
In a statement later sent to NPR, chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said department chief Hegseth will address his senior military leaders early next week.
"We stand ready to mobilize U.S. military personnel in support of DHS operations in Portland at the President's direction," Parnell said, and that the department will provide information as it becomes available.
Earlier this week, in comments made in the Oval Office, Trump teased a plan involving Portland, accusing activists there of being paid "professional agitators" and anarchists.
"We're going to get out there and do a big number on those people in Portland," he said.
Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, cited Trump's White House comments in a video statement, requesting that Portlanders "not take the bait," and said Trump's comments were made to provoke a negative response.
"He wants to stoke fear and chaos and trigger violent interactions and riots to justify expanded authoritarian control," Merkley said. "Portland is peaceful and strong and we will take care of each other."
Trump has previously carried out military deployments in Democratic-run cities that he's described as dangerous and crime-ridden, despite data in those cities often showing decreases in violent crime.
In June, he deployed thousands of National Guard troops to Los Angeles — against the requests of state and local authorities — after a wave of immigration raids sparked widespread protests. In August, he similarly ordered in the National Guard to Washington, D.C., a city he has repeatedly denounced as a bastion of unchecked crime.
D.C.'s crime rate recently hit a three-decade low.
Earlier this month, he threatened "Apocalypse Now"-style action against Chicago but later later walked back the threat of potentially warring with an American city, claiming he meant instead that "we're going to clean up our cities."
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, a Democrat, said in a statement that her office had been provided no information on "any military mission."
"There is no national security threat in Portland," she said. "Our communities are safe and calm. I ask Oregonians to stay calm and enjoy a beautiful fall day."
Portland's Democratic mayor, Keith Wilson, said the deployment of troops to the city would be unnecessary and that it's a power play on the part of the White House.
"The number of necessary troops is zero, in Portland and any other American city," Wilson said in a statement.
If Trump does issue National Guard troops to Oregon's most populous city, he would be continuing a streak of broken political norms that has dominated both of his terms in the White House.
Prior to this year, a president hadn't exerted his power to go over a governor's head to call on the National Guard without their request since 1965. That year, President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered troops to protect civil rights advocates marching from Selma, Ala., to the state's capital, Montgomery.
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