President Donald Trump defended his decision to deploy National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon.
Around 200 troops will patrol the city, which Trump has described in apocalyptic terms after viewing what Gov. Tina Kotek and Mayor Keith Wilson say is years-old footage of protests shown on Fox News. Still, the president justified the move as both necessary and lawful.
"As I determined on September 27th, when I activated and called into service the National Guard in Oregon, conditions continue to deteriorate into lawless mayhem," Trump posted Wednesday afternoon on Truth Social. "Our GREAT Federal Law Enforcement Officers have not been able to enforce the Laws in Oregon. ANTIFA and the Radical Left Anarchists have been viciously attacking our Federal Law Enforcement Officers, men and women who are simply doing their job, protecting Federal Property, and enforcing Federal Immigration Laws and the Rule of Law."
State Attorney General Dan Rayfield has filed a lawsuit challenging the deployment, saying the president had misrepresented conditions in the city to justify the deployment.
"We will never allow MOBS to take over our streets, burn our Cities, or destroy America," Trump posted. "The National Guard is now in place, and has been dedicated to restoring LAW AND ORDER, and ending the Chaos, Death, and Destruction! We are a Nation of LAW, and we will PREVAIL. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DJT."
Trump told a gathering of top military leaders Tuesday that he intended to use U.S. cities as "training grounds" to fight what he called "the enemy within," and he attacked Oregon's leadership in a follow-up post suggesting his claims about Portland were more accurate than local officials' assessment.
"The Governor of Oregon must be living in a 'Dream World,'" Trump posted. "Portland is a NEVER-ENDING DISASTER. Many people have been badly hurt, and even killed. It is run like a Third World Country. We’re only going in because, as American Patriots, WE HAVE NO CHOICE. LAW AND ORDER MUST PREVAIL IN OUR CITIES, AND EVERYWHERE ELSE!"