ANDREW LIMBONG, HOST:
President Trump says he's ordered troops to Portland, Oregon. In a post on Truth Social, Trump called the city war-ravaged and claimed that federal troops will help protect ICE facilities from antifa and what he called domestic terrorists. In response, Oregon Governor Tina Kotek said yesterday that there is no national security threat in Portland, and she called the planned mobilization an abuse of power. For more on the response from Oregon to the White House's plan, we're joined now by Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield. Hi. Welcome to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED.
DAN RAYFIELD: How are you doing?
LIMBONG: You know, I imagine you're busier than I am. So what have you heard directly from the administration about what to expect?
RAYFIELD: So we have been trying to engage with the Trump administration - a lot of credit to our governor who has been speaking with the Trump administration - to let them know what the reality is on the ground, and that we live in a country where you don't mobilize the United States military against its own citizens, except under extreme conditions, like rebellion and insurrection. And those facts just aren't manifesting themselves here on the ground. We all care about public safety - credibly important. But we have a local police - the Oregon State Police - and a district attorney that is upholding our laws.
LIMBONG: Wait, so what do you actually know from the administration? Are troops being sent? Do you know, like, how many? Is it clear?
RAYFIELD: Well, from the very early on - this is something we prepared for from Day 1 - the president has been talking about this. And he has sent a letter to the state effectively asking the governor to mobilize the National Guard voluntarily. And the governor has said, no. The president made a threat in the letter that if you don't do it, I'm going to do it for you. Now, legally, you have to meet certain prerequisites to be able to do that. And that's what the president is, you know, talking about trying to do. And should he actually mobilize the U.S. military to come into Portland, we'll be ready to file a lawsuit to tell the courts that he has not met those prerequisites.
LIMBONG: If you kind of are unsure as to what to expect from the president at this point, how do you prepare? Like, what legal avenues are you using if you don't know what's coming?
RAYFIELD: As a entity that's here to protect Oregonians, we have to be ready in the event of all circumstances. So last week, I told our folks at Oregon Department of Justice that I want to be ready. Should the president act, I want to be in a court within 12 hours so that we can be ready and be responsive to anything that the federal government brings. When they overstep, we're going to hold them accountable in court. And so that has been our approach moving forward. The first steps were taken. Now we're waiting to hear back from the federal government, and once we get responses, then we'll act accordingly.
LIMBONG: The Trump administration has deployed federal troops in D.C., in Los Angeles, and he's threatened to do so in other U.S. cities. Have you spoken to any leaders in any of those other cities in anticipation? Have you just compared notes?
RAYFIELD: So we've been regularly meeting, collaborating in terms of being ready and understanding how the Trump administration is pursuing some of their avenues. And for folks just to remember, in those lawsuits that were filed in Washington, D.C. and in Southern California, they were successful. You have had judges that have told the Trump administration, you've stepped too far, right? Things that we all kind of, you know, take for granted, but also just know - you don't use the military against its citizens unless it's extreme conditions, none of which are manifesting in our country right now.
LIMBONG: What have you been telling Portland residents?
RAYFIELD: So you have a unified message from all of our leaders across the state in every community, which is, we have an organized plan. You need to follow our laws. We want you to exercise free speech when things are - you know, go a direction that you don't feel comfortable with - right? - the way that Trump is implementing a very unpopular ICE agenda, breaking promises, going against people who are just trying to, you know, take their kids to school. You should voice your opinions about that. You should protest, but do it peacefully, do it lawfully, and when you don't, we'll hold you accountable. And we're doing that here in Oregon.
However, if the Trump administration pushes beyond their legal authority and mobilizes the U.S. military, we will be there. We will be in court to say, no, you have to follow our Constitution. You have to follow our laws, and it doesn't matter whether you're protesting or whether you're the president of the United States abusing your executive powers.
LIMBONG: That's Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield speaking with us about President Trump's announced deployment of troops to Portland. Attorney General, thank you so much.
RAYFIELD: Thank you. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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