Trump Signals Willingness to Invoke Insurrection Act as Illinois and Chicago Challenge Deployments
President Trump said he might invoke the Insurrection Act — saying he would do so “if people were being killed” or if courts or local officials held up deployments — as his administration federalized National Guard units for missions in Chicago and Portland. States and cities, including Oregon and Illinois/Chicago, have sued and won temporary court orders blocking some troop movements (notably Judge Karin J. Immergut’s order covering out‑of‑state Guard deployments to Oregon), while the White House has appealed and shifted units from other states, touching off a widening multi‑state legal showdown.
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📌 Key Facts
- President Trump authorized federalization and cross‑state deployment of National Guard units for missions in Portland and Chicago and publicly said on Oct. 6–7 he would consider invoking the Insurrection Act 'if people were being killed' or courts/local officials blocked deployments; legal experts and civil‑liberties groups warned that invoking the Insurrection Act is rare and raises major constitutional concerns.
- The administration and Pentagon moved or planned roughly the following forces: California National Guard personnel to Oregon (Pentagon cited ~200; California and governors reported at least 101 arrived), about 200 Texas Guard soldiers to Chicago, and authorization to federalize roughly 300 Illinois Guard troops for Chicago; a Defense Department memo also referenced activating up to 400 Texas Guard personnel for multiple deployments.
- U.S. District Judge Karin J. Immergut issued a temporary restraining order blocking the administration from deploying out‑of‑state National Guard troops to Oregon (finding the President lacked a 'colorable basis' to invoke §12406(3) and broadening the order to bar troops from any other state); the TRO was set to expire Oct. 18, 2025, and the White House filed an emergency appeal to the 9th Circuit and sought stays.
- States, cities and civil‑rights groups filed lawsuits challenging the deployments: Oregon and California sued over the Portland mobilization; Illinois and the City of Chicago (with ACLU‑Illinois involvement) sued to block Texas and other states' Guard troops from Chicago; a federal judge in Illinois declined an immediate block but set a hearing and gave the administration two days to respond.
- Despite the court rulings and state objections, federalized Guard members from other states were reported arriving in Oregon and preparations for deployments to Chicago continued, while governors such as Tina Kotek and J.B. Pritzker said they received little or no formal federal notice and threatened further legal action.
- The administration has cited an obscure provision of Title 10 (10 U.S.C. §12406) as the statutory basis for federalizing the Guard rather than immediately invoking the Insurrection Act; scholars (e.g., Brennan Center, Elizabeth Goitein) said using Title 10 or Title 10 activations this way is unprecedented and invoking the Insurrection Act could be used to bypass judicial blocks and longstanding Posse Comitatus concerns.
- The standoff has escalated political and public rhetoric: President Trump publicly criticized Judge Immergut, White House aides (including Stephen Miller) and MAGA influencers urged resistance to court rulings, and the White House publicly mocked Gov. Pritzker; governors and National Governors Association leaders faced pressure over cross‑state deployments.
- On‑the‑ground conflicts and legal complaints continue: news outlets and a coalition of media organizations alleged federal agents used 'indiscriminate' or 'violent' force near the Broadview ICE facility (with at least seven people federally charged from those clashes), some jurisdictions imposed curfews or protections for protesters, and local leaders like Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson issued executive orders barring federal agents from using city property as staging areas.
📊 Analysis & Commentary (1)
Shock and ORE
"Politico’s Playbook argues the federal court block on the administration’s move to federalize Guard troops in Oregon is a crucial check on an unprecedented effort to normalize domestic military deployments, warns of dangerous constitutional and political consequences if allowed to stand, and notes Democrats face a messaging vulnerability on public safety even as governors and judges push back."
📰 Sources (29)
How Trump could use the Insurrection Act to send troops to American cities
New information:
- Direct Oval Office quotes from President Trump saying, "we have an Insurrection Act for a reason" and that he would use it 'if people were being killed' and courts or local officials were blocking deployments.
- Citation of the Brennan Center for Justice warning the Insurrection Act grants 'limitless discretion' and has not been meaningfully updated in ~150 years.
- Explicit framing that invoking the Insurrection Act could be used to bypass recent judicial blocks on deployments (e.g., courts slowing or stopping Guard use).
- Restatement that a federal judge ruled in early September that Trump's use of the National Guard in Los Angeles violated the Posse Comitatus Act (legal precedent context included).
Illinois braces for possible National Guard arrival while lawsuit challenging deployment simmers
New information:
- Article cites specific troop counts: roughly 300 Illinois Guard troops to be federalized and 400 from Texas.
- A federal judge gave the administration two days to respond and set a hearing for Thursday.
- Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order barring federal immigration agents from using city‑owned property (parking lots, garages, vacant lots) as staging areas.
- ACLU of Illinois has filed a related lawsuit accusing the federal government of a campaign of violence and intimidation at protests near the Broadview ICE facility.
- DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin formally responded, saying the First Amendment protects peaceful assembly but 'not rioting.'
Illinois aims to stop Trump from sending National Guard troops to Chicago
New information:
- Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Attorney General Kwame Raoul filed a lawsuit seeking to stop National Guard members from Texas and other states being sent to Chicago.
- The legal action is presented as a response to recent protests over immigration raids and claims of excessive force by federal agents.
Here’s the latest.
New information:
- About 200 Texas National Guard troops were expected to be part of the Illinois deployment.
- A judge declined to immediately block the Illinois deployment and scheduled a hearing for Thursday.
- A military official said the Texas troops were expected to begin operations no sooner than Wednesday (Oct. 8, 2025).
- Governors J.B. Pritzker and Gavin Newsom threatened to withdraw from the National Governors Association if it does not denounce cross‑state Guard deployments.
- Broadview, Ill., imposed a daylight curfew on protests to 'protect demonstrators from attacks by federal agents.'
War in Gaza moves into its third year. And, Trump's power to deploy the National Guard
New information:
- NPR reports Gov. Greg Abbott tweeted a photo of Texas National Guard troops 'deploying now' (image of troops boarding a military plane).
- NPR identifies the administration's cited statutory basis as Section 12‑406 of Title 10 (an obscure provision) rather than invoking the Insurrection Act.
- NPR notes contemporaneous coverage that the Supreme Court is hearing a conversion‑therapy case and frames the Gaza war's second‑anniversary context alongside deployment debate.
Illinois AG responds to Trump's push to send National Guard to Chicago
New information:
- On‑the‑record interview with Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul responding to President Trump's push to send National Guard forces to Chicago.
- Interview includes commentary from a former Illinois National Guard official describing efforts to deploy troops to Chicago amid state and local objections.
Trump ramps up pressure on judges as he deploys more troops in US
New information:
- White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller publicly called the initial district‑court ruling a 'legal insurrection' on X and asserted a district judge cannot limit the President’s authority to dispatch military forces.
- Report that after Judge Karin Immergut blocked federalization of Oregon’s Guard, the administration attempted to call up California National Guard troops and the judge said that move was 'in direct contravention' of her earlier decision.
- Illinois and the City of Chicago filed a lawsuit seeking to block deployments of Texas and Illinois National Guard troops to their state; a federal judge declined to immediately block the deployment but urged the administration to 'strongly consider taking a pause' until a Thursday hearing.
Trump's power to deploy National Guard, explained
New information:
- Clear, plain-language explainer of the three National Guard status categories: state active duty, Title 32 (state command, federal funding), and Title 10 (federal command and funding).
- Notes that Illinois and the city of Chicago filed a lawsuit seeking to stop the deployments and that a federal judge in Illinois declined an immediate block (itemized legal actions referenced).
- Quotes Elizabeth Goitein (Brennan Center) saying the president's use of Title 10 'hasn't been used in this way before,' contextualizing legal precedent.
Trump floats Insurrection Act use amid National Guard standoff with states
New information:
- White House quote (Oct. 7): direct Trump remark saying he might invoke the Insurrection Act if courts or local officials hold up deployments and 'people were being killed'.
- Reports that Illinois filed a lawsuit Monday after the administration said it would send 300 Guard members to Chicago.
- Reiteration that a federal judge in Oregon temporarily blocked the planned Guard deployment there Sunday evening (second such block).
Trump Said He Could Invoke the Insurrection Act to Deploy Troops. Here’s What to Know.
New information:
- President Donald Trump publicly said on Oct. 6, 2025 he would consider invoking the Insurrection Act and gave specific conditions that might justify it (e.g., 'if people were being killed and courts were holding us up, or mayors or governors were holding us up').
- The article quotes Trump calling Judge Karin Immergut as having 'lost her way' after she broadened a restraining order blocking out‑of‑state National Guard deployments to Oregon.
- Contextual detail: the Insurrection Act dates to 1807 and 'has not been invoked for more than 30 years,' highlighting the historical rarity and civil‑liberties implications of such a move.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek says Portland "is not a warzone" as Trump pushes to deploy National Guard
New information:
- Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek told CBS News in an on‑camera interview that 'Portland is not a warzone.'
- The CBS piece frames the quote in the context of the ongoing legal showdown after a federal judge blocked the president from sending troops to Oregon over the weekend.
Oregon governor calls Trump’s actions ‘an abuse of power and threat to our democracy’
New information:
- Direct on‑camera interview/quote from Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek calling the federal actions 'an abuse of power and threat to our democracy.'
- PBS reports Illinois has sued to stop plans to send roughly 400 Texas National Guard troops (confirming and foregrounding the interstate legal challenge in national coverage).
- PBS NewsHour segment includes Gov. Kotek's perspective as an affected state executive, adding an explicit gubernatorial denunciation to prior legal/operational coverage.
Fox News Politics Newsletter: White House slams ‘slob’ Pritzker after National Guard rejection
New information:
- White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson publicly called Gov. J.B. Pritzker a 'slob' after he rejected the administration's National Guard deployment ultimatum.
- Fox News Digital published the administration's quoted language mocking Pritzker and printing the exchange in a newsletter item, adding a direct White House insult to the public record of the dispute.
MAGA calls for Trump to overrule judges on National Guard deployments
New information:
- Public calls from MAGA influencers and conservative media figures urging the White House and President Trump to openly defy federal judges over National Guard deployments.
- Direct quotes and named political actors: Matt Walsh and Laura Loomer publicly urged defiance; Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller said district court rulings have been 'flagrantly unlawful and unconstitutional.'
- White House rhetoric described as increasingly hostile toward the judiciary even as officials say they will abide by rulings while appealing.
Trump Says Portland Is ‘Burning.’ Here’s What Crime Is Really Like.
New information:
- The New York Times reports that about 200 Texas Guard soldiers were moving to Chicago (specific troop count reported).
- The administration filed an emergency appeal seeking a stay of Judge Karin Immergut’s restraining order.
- Reporting documents that Portland demonstrations 'rarely numbered more than two dozen' before the president's deployment announcement and that clashes grew more violent after the announcement.
- Judge Immergut broadened her earlier order to cover Guard troops from any state after the administration attempted to substitute Texas for California troops.
Where things stand with federal law enforcement in Chicago and Portland
New information:
- AP/PBS piece highlights that the ACLU of Illinois filed a suit alongside Illinois/Chicago challenging federal actions.
- A coalition of news outlets and media associations (Illinois Press Association, Block Club Chicago, Chicago Headline Club) filed a separate complaint alleging federal agents used 'indiscriminate' and 'violent force' at the Broadview ICE facility.
- Article states at least seven people have faced federal charges after arrests tied to the Broadview clashes.
- Quotes and context include a White House spokesman confirming authorization and a historical Stephen Miller quote about federalizing Guard forces (Nov. 2023) illustrating policy intent.
Here’s the latest.
New information:
- State of Illinois filed a lawsuit on Oct. 6, 2025 seeking to stop mobilization of National Guard troops to the state and arguing deployments would 'undermine public safety by inciting a public outcry.'
- President Trump ordered 'hundreds' of Texas National Guard troops to deploy for 'federal protection missions' to Chicago and Portland.
- Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said he would issue an executive order establishing 'ICE‑free zones' that bar federal immigration staging on city property without a warrant.
Federal judge blocks Trump's National Guard deployment to Portland amid constitutional challenge
New information:
- Article names the DOJ attorney (Eric Hamilton) who defended the deployment in court and records Judge Immergut pressing him directly about circumventing her prior TRO.
- Article quotes Immergut questioning the DOJ's continued pursuit of troop movements ('How could bringing in federalized National Guard from California not be in direct contravention of the TRO that I issued yesterday?').
- Article notes the order bars the use of troops from any other state or Washington, D.C., to be deployed to Oregon and cites the judge's finding that the action 'appears to violate both 10 U.S.C. §12406 and the Tenth Amendment.'
- Includes Governor Gavin Newsom's immediate public reaction (X post) celebrating the court victory and summarizing the relief granted.
Judge temporarily blocks Trump from any sending National Guard troops to Oregon
New information:
- A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump administration from sending any National Guard troops to Oregon, including California's Guard.
- The TRO was issued Sunday night after California joined Oregon's lawsuit challenging the deployment.
- The deployment plan had involved about 200 California National Guard members slated for Portland.
Democratic governors vow court fight as Trump sends National Guard members to Oregon
New information:
- Pentagon spokesman said about 200 federalized California National Guard members were reassigned to Portland — Gov. Tina Kotek said ~100 arrived Saturday and ~100 more were en route.
- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s memo (submitted to the court) said up to 400 Texas National Guard personnel were being activated for deployment to Oregon, Illinois and possibly elsewhere; Texas Gov. Greg Abbott authorized the call‑up.
- Oregon, the city of Portland and California are seeking an amended temporary restraining order against deployment of any National Guard troops; Oregon AG Dan Rayfield and Gov. Tina Kotek provided direct quotes opposing the deployment and calling for judicial relief.
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