Gov. Kotek urges Oregon residents to ‘stay calm’ despite National Guard deployment

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Gov. Tina Kotek says she is “dissatisfied” with a lack of communication from the Trump Administration following the president’s ongoing plans to deploy federal troops in the state.

The Oregon governor’s statements come after President Donald Trump invoked Title 10, which allowed him to order the deployment of the Oregon National Guard into Portland. According to the Oregon Military Department, boots are expected to be on the ground by Thursday.

“This administration is very unpredictable,” Kotek said. “As governor, I shouldn’t learn on social media that this is potentially going to happen, and I certainly shouldn’t get something first of the day on a Sunday morning that this is happening. This unpredictability is tough for everybody, and my heart goes out to Oregonians who are scared right now…The federal government is literally taking our tax dollars away from us to hurt Oregonians.”

Kotek emphasized that the members of the Oregon National Guard are, in fact, residents of Oregon whose lives and families will be “disrupted” by the oncoming assignment.

“Those who take an oath and those who are committed to the Oregon National Guard will follow the chain of command, because that is what they are required to do — even if I disagree with that chain of command,” Kotek said.

On Sunday, Gov. Kotek, Oregon AG Dan Rayfield, and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson announced their request for a temporary restraining order that was officially filed in the District Court of Oregon on Monday.

The motion directed by AG Rayfield claims that the Trump Administration has chosen to target Portland due to recent protests at the ICE facility in South Portland. However, the document states that these protests “fall far short of a rebellion.”

Kotek also said that the Portland Police Bureau is managing the protests in Portland while also complying with sanctuary city laws, which state that officers will not aid federal immigration enforcement efforts.

“We are maintaining the ability for people to exercise their free speech rights, but also protecting the folks on the ground there,” Kotek said. “As I have told the president, this situation is not an insurrection; it does not require military intervention.”

Rather, Kotek states that the deployment of troops in Oregon will only stoke fear for its residents.

“Oregonians have been concerned,” she said. “We have entire communities in our state who are fearful of not only the rhetoric coming out of the Trump Administration but the actions of immigration enforcement. That has set a chilling effect from our schools to our business about what’s going on.”

In response, Kotek said she and her fellow state and local leaders are going to do “everything we can to reverse this outcome.”

“I urge you to stay calm,” she said. “I urge you to express whatever your concerns are or values peacefully, lawfully. Talk to your lawmakers in Congress. Come out to a demonstration or a rally, like I was at yesterday. That’s OK. That’s who we are as Oregonians.”