President Donald Trump’s initiative to deploy National Guard troops in key U.S. cities has encountered significant legal hurdles, particularly in Chicago and Portland, where federal judges have intervened to block the movement of troops.
Meanwhile, in Memphis, Tennessee, the National Guard is actively patrolling some local areas, receiving support and approval from Republican Governor Bill Lee.
Troops in Memphis, equipped in Guard uniforms and protective gear while carrying firearms, began their oversight operations near a Bass Pro Shops and a tourist welcome center along the Mississippi River as of Friday.
The exact number of personnel deployed in Memphis remains undisclosed.
Trump’s administration has expressed intentions to dispatch troops to additional cities, including Baltimore; the District of Columbia; New Orleans; and major California urban centers like Oakland, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.
The federal government cites the necessity of these troops to assist immigration enforcement and safeguard federal properties.
In Memphis, the National Guard remains under the jurisdiction of Governor Bill Lee, who endorses their deployment to assist in a broader federal initiative aimed at crime reduction.
On the other hand, Trump’s attempts to send National Guard troops— originally from Texas and California— to Chicago and Portland have met fierce resistance from state and local officials.
These leaders argue that such federal interference infringes upon their state rights and violates federal law.
This week, federal courts in Illinois and Oregon have halted Trump’s attempts to mobilize troops in both cities.
President Trump announced his plans for deploying the Guard to Memphis on September 15, an initiative welcomed by Governor Bill Lee.
Memphis Mayor Paul Young, a Democrat who did not request the troop presence, expressed hope that the National Guard’s focus will be on targeting violent crime rather than intimidating local residents.
Federal officials report that since the task force commenced operations in Memphis on September 29, various agents, including those from the FBI and ICE, have made hundreds of arrests and issued over 2,800 traffic citations.
In a separate incident, Illinois Senators Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth were denied access to an ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois, where previous confrontations between protesters and federal agents occurred.
Duckworth criticized the denial of access, questioning, “What are you afraid of?”
Both senators assert their authority to oversee congressional matters, voicing concerns about the activities happening behind the facility’s doors.
Durbin added, “Something is going on in there they don’t want us to see.”
Following the legal injunction in Illinois, a federal judge has put a temporary stop to the deployment of troops to Chicago for at least two weeks, effectively blocking the initiative while the Justice Department filed an appeal.
U.S. District Judge April Perry emphasized that the Trump administration’s order violated the 10th Amendment, which reserves certain powers to the states, in addition to the 14th Amendment, which ensures due process and equal protection rights.
In her ruling, Judge Perry referenced the historical reluctance to involve military forces in domestic policing roles.
She stated, “Not even the Founding Father most ardently in favor of a strong federal government—Alexander Hamilton—believed that one state’s militia could be sent to another state for the purposes of political retribution.”
Judge Perry labeled such actions as “preposterous.”
Reflecting on the ruling, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said, “The court confirmed what we all know: There is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago.”
Concurrent with these judicial setbacks, court actions in Oregon have similarly delayed troop deployments to Portland, with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals addressing the situation Thursday.
U.S. Northern Command spokesperson Lt. Cmdr. Theresa Meadows confirmed that the deployed troops for both Portland and Chicago are “not conducting any operational activities at this time,” according to officials.
In a separate development, 500 Guard members from Texas and Illinois were activated for a 60-day period and arrived this week at a U.S. Army Reserve Center located in Elwood, southwest of Chicago.
These troops began patrolling Thursday behind portable fences established outside the ICE facility in Broadview.
Additionally, another federal judge in Illinois has mandated the removal of an 8-foot-tall fence surrounding the Broadview facility after it was deemed illegal for obstructing a public roadway, following concerns raised by the local Village of Broadview.
On the same day, another Illinois judge imposed regulations on federal agents, requiring them to wear badges and barring the use of specific riot control measures against peaceful demonstrators and journalists outside the ICE facility, which is approximately 12 miles west of Chicago.
In a further escalation of tensions in Chicago, federal prosecutors have secured grand jury indictments against two individuals accused of attempting to strike and box in a Border Patrol agent’s vehicle using their cars last Saturday.
The agent who was endangered exited his vehicle and fired five shots in the direction of respondent Marimar Martinez, who required hospitalization for her injuries.
Formal charges of assault against a federal officer with a dangerous weapon have been applied to both Martinez and Anthony Ruiz, 21, in connection with this incident.
image source from：abcnews
