Expected arrival of National Guard in Portland likely pushed back due to processing changes

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Despite a recent announcement that Oregon National Guard troops could have boots on the ground as early as Thursday, military officials are now saying that timeline may be pushed back.

According to the Oregon Military Department, officials have spent the past few days making sure they have enough volunteers to meet the demand of 200 specified by Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth on Sunday.

But due to that prep work, troops likely will not arrive on Thursday.

The Oregon National Guard first got the order on Sunday and then got to work calling out to volunteers — trying to fill their mission of 200.

Lt. Col. Stephen Bomar confirmed with KOIN 6 News that they had just reached 200 on Tuesday afternoon.

According to a posting on the Oregon Legislative website, the National Guard troops will come from Salem and Woodburn. Specifically the 1186 Military Police Company of Salem and Company C, 3rd Battalion, 116th Cavalry Regiment of Woodburn.

“They were previously trained with the National Guard Response Force in crowd control for state purposes, Russell Gibson, government and legislative director for the Oregon Military Department, said in a meeting of the Joint Interim Committee On Ways and Means Subcommittee On Public Safety,” the posting stated.

Bomar said they have also started processing the leadership team and have had to connect with Northern Command, which is based in Colorado.

“They arrived here last night, and that leadership team from the Guard and NorthCom is linking up later today or early tomorrow morning to kind of hash out a plan,” Bomar said. “But as far as the soldiers are concerned, it’s kind of a crawl, walk, run phase. And they’re definitely in the crawl phase. It’s all administrative.”

Bomar said this is taking longer because it is a coordination they have not done before and a different process than they are used to.

When they do get to Portland, their mission is to protect federal properties and the employees working there, but Bomar said that even they do not know exactly what that will look like.

“It could be that they are out front of the ICE facility. It could be that they are patrolling in front of other federal facilities. It could be that they take all the duties and responsibilities inside the facilities to free up those personnel to walk outside,” he said. “But that’s what’s being looked at right now.”

Stay with KOIN 6 News as this story develops.