US appeals court says Trump can send soldiers to Portland, Oregon

"A United States court of appeals has ruled that the administration of President Donald Trump can move forward with plans to deploy soldiers to Portland, Oregon, despite the absence of any serious emergency and the objections of state and local officials. The Monday ruling by the Ninth Circuit of the US Court of Appeals will allow the Trump administration to send 200 National Guard members to the Democrat-run city."

"The Trump administration has deployed armed forces to Democrat-run cities across the country, along with aggressive immigration raids in which heavily-armed federal agents wearing masks have pulled people off the streets, demanding that they prove their legal status. Scores of US citizens have also been swept up in those raids, during which civil liberties groups have accused immigration agents of operating based on racial profiling and detaining people without cause."

"The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), a US rights watchdog, expressed disappointment in the decision. As the founders emphasised, domestic deployment of troops should be reserved for rare, extreme emergencies as a last resort, but that is far from what the Trump administration is doing in Portland, Chicago, Los Angeles, and DC, Hina Shamsi, director of the ACLU's National Security Project, said in a statement. The presence of troops in otherwise beautiful vibrant American cities erodes a sense of safety and undermines the core freedoms to assemble and voice dissent."

A United States court of appeals permitted the Trump administration to deploy soldiers to Portland, enabling 200 National Guard members to be sent despite local objections and no serious emergency. The Ninth Circuit three-judge panel concluded at a preliminary stage that the President likely lawfully exercised statutory authority when he federalized the state's National Guard. The administration has also sent armed forces to other Democrat-run cities and conducted aggressive immigration raids with heavily armed, masked federal agents who have pulled people off the streets. Civil liberties groups report scores of US citizens detained and allege racial profiling and unlawful detentions. The ACLU warned that domestic troop deployments should be reserved for rare extreme emergencies and said troop presence erodes safety and undermines freedoms to assemble and voice dissent.

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