Judge blocks Trump’s sending Guard to Oregon!
Los Angeles, US, Oct 6 (EFE).-
A United States federal judge has blocked President Donald Trump’s plan to deploy 300 California National Guard soldiers to Oregon to quell protests over federal immigration raids.
Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, issued the ruling in response to a motion filed by the state of California. The decision came two days after she granted a 14-day temporary restraining order to review a separate lawsuit filed by Oregon, which sought to prevent the deployment of its own state troops to Portland.
According to California Governor Gavin Newsom, the judge determined that Trump’s effort to send California troops to Oregon was an attempt to “circumvent” her earlier order.
“The rule of law has prevailed – and California’s National Guard will soon be heading home,” Newsom said in a statement. “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.”
Last week, Trump urged military leaders to use troops against what he called the “enemy from within.” His plan to send National Guard forces to Portland, Oregon’s largest city, was intended to curb protests against raids carried out by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
At the same time, Trump ordered 400 members of the Texas National Guard to be deployed to Oregon and Illinois, according to Illinois Governor JB Pritzker.
Trump had previously lost a legal battle in June over his attempt to deploy 4,000 California National Guard members without the state government’s consent, the first such move in six decades.
Although the court declared that order illegal, the White House retained control over 300 California troops still on duty at the time, which Trump said were needed to protect federal buildings in Los Angeles during immigration protests.
On Sunday, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek urged that all out-of-state troops be withdrawn immediately, stressing that there is no insurrection in Portland, contrary to Trump’s claims. EFE ppc/bks
