“This is a blatant and disrespectful ploy to do an end run around yesterday’s order.” – Attorney General Rob Bonta
“How could bringing in federalized National Guard [from California] not be in direct contravention of the TRO I entered yesterday?” Judge Karin Immergut asked during the hearing. “Why is this appropriate?”
Immergut found that the President’s statements regarding the deployment of federalized National Guard troops were not “conceived in good faith” and were “simply untethered to the facts.”
SACRAMENTO – In at least a temporary rebuke of the Trump administration and a victory for the rule of law, a federal judge has blocked the federal government’s attempt to deploy 300 California National Guard soldiers to Portland, Oregon, calling it an unlawful effort to “circumvent” her earlier ruling that Oregon National Guard members could not be federalized or deployed.
The U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon granted the states’ request for a temporary restraining order, halting any federalization, relocation, or deployment of National Guard members from any state to Oregon.
The decision is the latest in a series of courtroom defeats for President Trump as his administration continues to face challenges to its use of state National Guard troops for domestic law enforcement.
“The rule of law has prevailed—and California’s National Guard will soon be heading home,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “This ruling is more than a legal victory, it’s a victory for American democracy itself. Donald Trump tried to turn our soldiers into instruments of his political will. While our fight continues, tonight the rule of law said ‘hell no.’”
Attorney General Rob Bonta said the ruling exposes the Trump administration’s ongoing disregard for judicial authority.
“The Trump administration’s flagrant disregard for the courts was on full display when it sought to circumvent Judge Immergut’s order blocking the federalization of the Oregon National Guard by redeploying troops from Los Angeles to Portland,” Bonta said.
He added, “This disrespect for the rule of law cannot stand—and I’m glad the court agreed. The President’s move to deploy the National Guard of one state over the objections of a Governor to another state over the objections of a second is well outside of the norms or practices of any President in recent history. But this President is determined to take as much power as the courts will give him. This fight isn’t over, but today’s rebuke of the President’s illegal actions is a step in the right direction.”
Earlier in the day, Newsom announced California’s intent to sue the Trump administration after the White House sought to deploy 300 California National Guard personnel into Portland, less than 24 hours after a federal district court blocked the attempted federalization of Oregon’s National Guard. California joined Oregon’s lawsuit in the federal district court in Oregon.
Despite the earlier court order finding no legal basis to deploy state National Guard troops to Portland and ordering that control of the Oregon National Guard be returned to state command, the administration attempted to send 300 federally controlled members of the California National Guard to take their place.
Those troops had originally been federalized months earlier in response to unrest in Los Angeles—unrest that did not require their deployment and has long since subsided.
In her ruling, U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, rejected the administration’s justification for deploying federalized troops.
“This historical tradition boils down to a simple proposition: this is a nation of Constitutional law, not martial law,” she wrote. “Defendants have made a range of arguments that, if accepted, risk blurring the line between civil and military federal power—to the detriment of this nation.”
Immergut found that the President’s statements regarding the deployment of federalized National Guard troops were not “conceived in good faith” and were “simply untethered to the facts.”
The court found that the administration’s renewed attempt to put National Guard troops on the ground in Portland appeared to flout her original order. Immergut granted Oregon and California’s motion to block the new call-up of Guard troops to Portland, calling the effort to bring California and Texas troops to Oregon “in direct contravention” of her original order.
“How could bringing in federalized National Guard [from California] not be in direct contravention of the TRO I entered yesterday?” Immergut asked during the hearing. “Why is this appropriate?”
Attorney General Bonta and Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield jointly filed an emergency motion to block the deployment, arguing that the administration was defying the court’s ruling and undermining state sovereignty.
“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 Bonta.
He added, “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.”
Rayfield stated, “The President’s abuse of law and power to hijack 300 members of our National Guard and take them into a nonexistent conflict is unprecedented,” said Newsom. “California has been on the forefront of resisting Trump’s authoritarian tirade since day one—and we are taking him to court yet again. With Attorney General Bonta fearlessly leading the charge in the courtroom, the Golden State is speaking truth to power as we fight the federal government’s illegal actions.”
Rayfield said the administration’s conduct was a deliberate violation of judicial authority.
“These actions are a direct attempt to circumvent the court’s order,” he said. “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 had argued that the deployments were authorized under 10 U.S.C. § 12406, a federal statute that allows the President to call up National Guard troops under limited circumstances. But both states argued that the administration’s use of that authority was “ultra vires,” or beyond the scope of presidential power.
Without the restraining order, both states argued, the unlawful deployment of National Guard troops would violate state sovereignty and the police powers reserved to the states under the Tenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The court agreed, finding that the administration’s efforts undermined public safety, harmed local economies, and damaged troop morale.
California and Oregon officials said the latest ruling was another decisive check on executive overreach and a reaffirmation of the rule of law.
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[SRC] https://davisvanguard.org/2025/10/federal-judge-blocks-national-guard-deployment/
