Trump’s Insurrection Act Threat Deepens Clash With Democratic Cities
Hundreds of Texas National Guard soldiers gathered Tuesday at an Army base near Chicago as Donald Trump’s threat to invoke the Insurrection Act intensified his confrontation with Democratic-led cities.
The Republican president again suggested he may use the centuries-old law to bypass court rulings and deploy Guard troops into cities whose local and state officials object, saying he is acting to combat crime and protect federal property.
A federal judge has temporarily blocked troop deployments to Portland, Oregon, while another has allowed operations to continue in Chicago, where federal agents have launched a broad crackdown on illegal immigration.
“Well, it’s been invoked before,” Trump told reporters, adding that if local leaders “can’t do the job, we’ll do the job.”
Rare Use of a Sweeping Presidential Power
The Insurrection Act—last used in 1992 during the Los Angeles riots—permits the president to deploy the military domestically in emergencies, typically at a governor’s request. It carves out an exception to laws barring the armed forces from civilian law enforcement, allowing troops to police and make arrests.
Trump’s renewed push marks a major escalation of his efforts to send the military into Democratic cities. Since beginning his second term in January, he has increasingly tested the boundaries of presidential authority.
Last week, he even proposed using American cities as “training grounds” for the military, sparking alarm among Democrats and civil liberties groups.
Randy Manner, a retired Army major general, called Trump’s approach unprecedented and dangerous. “It essentially says the president can do whatever he wants,” he said. “That’s the definition of dictatorship and fascism.”
Chicago and Portland at the Center
Trump has already ordered Guard deployments to Chicago and Portland, defying opposition from local Democratic leaders who say his claims of urban chaos are exaggerated.
On Tuesday, Texas Guard troops assembled at a training center in Elwood, about 50 miles southwest of Chicago, though it was unclear when they would enter the city.
Local officials report that protests over Trump’s immigration policies have remained mostly peaceful and small, far from the “war zone” the president describes. Crime in Chicago has fallen sharply, and daily life has continued largely undisturbed.
The most notable protests have occurred outside an immigration processing facility in suburban Broadview, where clashes between demonstrators and federal officers have resulted in injuries and arrests.
Illinois Sues to Block Deployment
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker accused Trump of using soldiers as “political props” in an attempt to “militarize our nation’s cities.”
Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to halt the federalization of 300 Illinois Guard troops and the transfer of 400 Texas troops to Chicago. A federal judge allowed the deployment to proceed temporarily but ordered the government to justify the move by Wednesday.
Meanwhile, a separate judge in Oregon has barred federal troops from policing Portland.
National Guard units typically answer to state governors and are deployed for emergencies like natural disasters. Under Trump’s direction, they have primarily been tasked with protecting federal property and agents, though the Defense Department says they may detain individuals temporarily.
Any move by Trump to formally invoke the Insurrection Act would almost certainly spark fresh legal challenges. The Supreme Court has held that the president alone decides when the law’s conditions—rebellion or unlawful obstruction of federal authority—are met.
