It was a familiar scene in the White House this week: President Donald Trump speaking to a group of reporters, where he once again name-checked Portland.

“You look at a place like Portland, it’s just, it’s ridiculous when they say there’s no problem,” the president said, repeating a false claim that the city is “on fire.”

He then pointed to a recent achievement: the administration’s win at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday, which overruled a lower court’s decision blocking the federalization of the Oregon National Guard.

“We won the case in Court of Appeals, I think it was the 9th Circuit,” Trump said. “It’s a pretty good and very strong opinion that we have the right to use the National Guard.”

Despite that legal victory, the administration has not deployed National Guard troops in Oregon.

A federal judge in Portland is set to hold what could be a high stakes hearing Friday to consider whether she will keep federalized troops from deploying to the city. At the same time, the 9th Circuit is considering whether to rehear the case.

Here’s a look at the legal issues at the center of this case and why that’s keeping National Guard members out of Portland — for now.

Trump won Monday at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, so why no troops yet?

There’s still a temporary restraining order blocking their deployment.

Trump first mobilized 200 members of the Oregon National Guard on Sept. 28. The state quickly sued, and six days later on Oct. 4, U.S. District Court Judge Karin Immergut issued a temporary restraining order keeping them from being federalized and under the president’s control.

Hours later, the Trump administration sent 200 members of the California National Guard to Oregon. By the evening of Oct. 5, they had plans to send hundreds more from the Texas National Guard.

Immergut held an emergency hearing and issued a second temporary restraining order that, while similar to the first, was more expansive. It blocked federalized National Guard troops anywhere in the U.S. from deploying to Oregon.

Attorneys with the U.S. Department of Justice only appealed the first restraining order — the one blocking the president from calling up the Oregon National Guard — to the 9th Circuit, not the second restraining order. So that more expansive order is still in effect, for now.

What’s the deal with the second temporary restraining order – “TRO”?

The issue is whether or not the 9th Circuit’s decision applies to one or both of Immergut’s orders.

The two judges who wrote the majority opinion agreed that because both of Immergut’s restraining orders are based on the same legal reasoning, they should both be dissolved — the two “rise or fall together on the merits.”

“Not so,” the third appeals court judge stated in her dissenting opinion. “Nothing in the majority’s order does—or could—require the district court to dissolve the second TRO, which is not before us.”

So far, Immergut has not dissolved the second TRO, which continues to hold up any deployment.

What happened after?

Hours after the 9th Circuit ruled President Trump could federalize the Oregon National Guard, attorneys with the Justice Department filed a motion asking Immergut to “dissolve” her second restraining order and clear the way for a possible deployment.

Immergut has set a hearing for Friday morning to consider whether the second temporary restraining order should stay in place.

The city of Portland, as well as the states of Oregon and California have asked for the opposite, saying the second restraining order should remain in place.

Meanwhile, the 9th Circuit is mulling a third option: rehearing the case altogether, as part of what’s called an “en banc.” If granted, this would bring together a larger group of appeals court judges to consider the case again. It’s a move typically reserved for cases where the legal questions are particularly complex.

What does the city of Portland, and the states of Oregon and California, say about the second TRO?

Attorneys for the city and states argue that keeping the second TRO in place is appropriate, given that future legal proceedings are still up in the air.

In court filings they argue to Immergut that the possibility of the “en banc” proceedings could change the 9th Circuit’s ruling from Monday. If the appeals court decides to rehear the case, the attorneys argue, this week’s decision “will be immediately vacated.”

The city and states told Immergut she would be making a “legal error” if she dissolved the second TRO.

“Had [the Trump administration] appealed the Second TRO, the relief they now seek from this Court would already be before the Ninth Circuit. But they chose not to appeal the Second TRO, which raises factual and legal issues that extend far beyond” the ruling issued this week.

What was the Trump administration’s response?

On Wednesday, the Trump administration told Immergut she shouldn’t wait to make a decision on her second TRO “because of the urgency of this matter.” Justice Department attorneys argued Immergut should allow the president to “at the very least” deploy the 200 federalized members of the Oregon National Guard he officially called up last month.

“The Ninth Circuit’s conclusion that the two TROs rise or fall together is also obviously correct,” they argued. “The Second TRO relied on the First TRO for its reasoning.”

Attorneys for the Trump administration also pushed back against the significance of a vote by the 9th Circuit to possibly rehear the case.

“Based on this development, plaintiffs repeatedly say the Ninth Circuit’s stay order is ‘non-final,’” attorneys for the administration argued. “Speculation that the order might be vacated by a higher authority does not obviate a lower court’s obligation to comply with that order as long as it remains in effect.”

Why is the president trying to deploy the National Guard to Portland?

The president says the guard is needed to protect federal functions at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in South Portland.

Protesters have regularly gathered for months outside the ICE facility, which takes up a single city block. Most of the demonstrations have been uneventful. Some have led to criminal charges. Federal officials have said the constant demonstrations forced them to close the facility for three weeks over the summer. Though reporting from OPB shows despite the closure, immigration arrests hardly slowed.

Some legal experts warn the president is normalizing sending troops to American cities.

Where do other cases around the country stand?

There are two other cases, one involving Trump’s troop deployment to Los Angeles in June and another involving a possible National Guard deployment to Chicago.

The Chicago deployment was temporarily blocked by a federal judge, which was upheld by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review that ruling.

In Los Angeles, the 9th Circuit allowed the president to federalize members of the California National Guard. But a federal judge later found they “willfully” violated federal law when they carried out the duties of local police. The administration has appealed that decision, which is also now before the 9th Circuit.

What happens next?

There’s an unknown number of possibilities that range from Immergut dissolving her second temporary restraining order — which could allow the National Guard to be deployed — to the larger panel of 9th Circuit judges rehearing the case, the Supreme Court could even issue a ruling in the Chicago case that affects a troop deployment to Portland.

Regardless of what happens with the temporary restraining orders, Immergut is set to hold a three-day trial on the lawsuit from Portland, Oregon and California against the troop deployment altogether. In those proceedings, set to start Oct. 29, she’ll be looking at the merits of the case. Specifically, she’ll hear testimony about whether the Trump administration violated state sovereignty, and if the president has the authority to call up the guard under these circumstances.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/10/23/oregon-federal-judge-decision-coming-trump-deployment-national-guard-portland/