The Trump administration’s Justice Department civil rights chief Harmeet Dhillon said Tuesday that the president has full legal authority to deploy the National Guard to downtown Portland, Oregon, after city police allegedly shielded Antifa rioters during violent clashes outside a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility.
Dhillon made the statement in response to a viral video showing Antifa activists hiding behind Portland police officers as they aimed high-powered flashlights at federal officers guarding the ICE building. The video appeared to show that the city’s officers providing cover for the rioters, who were thereby protected from crowd-control measures such as pepper balls fired by federal agents.
“This is exactly why the 9th Circuit just said POTUS can send in the National Guard!” Dhillon wrote on X. “Incredible FAIL!”
Court Greenlights National Guard Deployment
Dhillon’s comments come shortly after a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals approved the federal deployment of up to 200 National Guard troops to Portland for a 60-day period.
In the ruling, issued October 20, the court found that the deployment was “well within a deferential proportional response to support good faith,” noting that federal law explicitly allows presidential intervention when there is a “rebellion or danger of a rebellion” or when the president is unable to enforce U.S. law due to local interference.
The court cited ongoing attacks on federal property and personnel by Antifa-aligned rioters and the alleged failure of local authorities to protect federal officers.
However, one judge dissented, arguing that the federal government had not provided evidence that local police refused to help federal officers when asked.
“The government cannot point to a single instance in which federal property or personnel was threatened or in need of assistance and the local police failed to respond,” the dissent read.
Antifa’s Escalating Confrontations
Federal agents and ICE employees in Portland have repeatedly faced violent attacks from far-left activists, who view the agency as a symbol of what they call “anti-immigrant oppression.”
According to DHS officials, the Antifa-linked rioters have targeted the ICE facility for months, vandalizing the building, shining lasers into officers’ eyes, and attempting to block entrances and exits.
Dhillon said the new Ninth Circuit ruling gives the president “clear constitutional backing” to protect federal employees when local governments refuse to do so.
Portland’s Local Leadership Under Fire
Portland’s progressive city government, led by Mayor Keith Wilson, has long faced criticism from federal authorities and conservative groups for allowing Antifa and other far-left activists to operate unchecked.
Critics say that local police routinely stand down during violent clashes, a charge that the city has repeatedly denied.
Dhillon’s statement accused Portland’s leadership of actively undermining law enforcement and putting federal officers in harm’s way by tolerating Antifa’s actions.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has also warned that organized far-left groups in Portland and Los Angeles have increasingly coordinated attacks against ICE and Border Patrol facilities in recent months.
National Implications: “Violence From One Side”
Commenting on the situation during a Fox News interview Tuesday, Donald Trump Jr. said the Portland unrest highlights the broader failure of Democratic-run cities to maintain law and order.
“They say it’s violence on both sides,” Trump Jr. said. “There is no violence from the right. It is not both sides — it’s from one side, and it was from the left alone.”
What Comes Next
The ruling marks a significant precedent for federal intervention in local jurisdictions, particularly those accused of obstructing immigration enforcement or tolerating violent demonstrations against federal entities.
Similar measures could be considered in other blue cities, where activists have recently attempted to block ICE operations and local leadership is emboldening them.
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