Hundreds of US National Guard troops ordered back home from Portland, Chicago

ISTANBUL

Hundreds of National Guard members sent to Portland, Oregon, and Chicago, Illinois, in response to protests over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown are being pulled back to their home states, according to an official.

A US Defense Department official told CBS News on Saturday that roughly 200 federalized California National Guard soldiers deployed to Portland and another 200 from the Texas National Guard sent to Chicago last month will all return.

Their missions had been justified by the White House as necessary to “protect federal assets and personnel,” with President Donald Trump invoking Title 10, which allows troop deployment if the president declares “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the government of the United States.”

Federal courts, however, repeatedly blocked the administration from placing the troops on city streets after lawsuits filed by local and state officials. On Friday, the administration appealed to the Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that permanently barred the deployment of National Guard soldiers in Portland.

The defense official added that the number of federalized Oregon Guard members will be cut from 200 to 100, while about 300 Illinois Guard members will remain under federal control.

The shift follows a statement issued Friday by US Northern Command, which said the Department of War — the term favored by the Trump administration for the Defense Department — would “be shifting and/or rightsizing our Title 10 footprint in Portland, Los Angeles, and Chicago to ensure a constant, enduring, and long-term presence in each city.”

Portland and Chicago have faced months of demonstrations outside US Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, and Trump’s moves to deploy federal troops in response have drawn sharp resistance from city and state leaders who say the actions escalate tensions unnecessarily.

The president also ordered National Guard deployments to Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and Memphis, citing crime and the need to safeguard federal property.