Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) on Saturday said the city of Portland did not need National Guard soldiers to help protect Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities as ordered by President Trump earlier in the day.
“In my conversations directly with President Trump and [Homeland Security] Secretary Noem, I have been abundantly clear with them that Portland and the state of Oregon believe in the rule of law, and we can manage our own local public safety needs,” Kotek said during a Saturday morning news conference.
“There is no insurrection. There is no threat to national security, and there is no need for military troops in our major city,” she added.
Earlier in the day, the president suggested the city was under siege.
“At the request of Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, 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,” the president wrote in a post on Truth Social.
“I am also authorizing Full Force, if necessary,” Trump added.
His comments follow a violent attack on a ICE field office in Texas earlier this week, where one detainee was killed and two others were injured.
However, Kotek said Portland is not suffering from alleged threats to safety and urged Trump to redirect military towards areas of need.
“Military service members should be dedicated to real emergencies. The members of the Oregon National Guard, their mission is to stand up and protect Oregonians, and they will do that every day, but they are not needed in the city. They are not needed here,” Kotek reiterated during the Saturday press conference.
The Oregon governor also mentioned that she reached out to Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) and Gov. JB Pritzker (D-Ill.) to assess how they responded to the White House’s push to deploy soldiers in their states without prior notice. An NPR-Ipsos poll published Saturday found a plurality of Americans oppose Trump’s National Guard deployment to some cities recently.
“The administration has refused to elaborate on what they mean when they say they will deploy full force against our city and citizens,” Kotek told the public.
Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.) also said she was unsure on why Trump would be sending military forces to Portland.
“I was at the ICE facility a couple of days ago. I was in Portland yesterday on the east side for a meeting and last night for an event. Nowhere did I see one single indication that we need military troops here,” Bonamici said at the news conference with Kotek.
“I strongly oppose this action by the President, and I thank the governor and the mayor for their words.”
By the end of August, Portland police recorded 1,982 aggravated assaults, 2,595 burglaries and 25 homicides, according to city data. Over the same time period in 2024, the city had recorded 2,060 aggravated assaults, 2,924 burglaries and 50 homicides.
The Trump administration’s intent to deploy soldiers to the city follows National Guard deployments to Los Angeles, D.C. and Memphis, Tenn., earlier this year. Soldiers have been sent to Democrat-led cities, which has at times led to protests.
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