President Trump suggested Monday he may use the Insurrection Act if courts continue to bar him from deploying the National Guard to cities across the U.S.
Why it matters: Trump would be the first president in more than 60 years to use the 1807 Act that allows the deployment of U.S. troops to quell domestic unrest without state approval.
- Trump came close to invoking the Act earlier this year, when he sent some 700 Marines to Los Angles to respond to ICE protests against the will of California officials.
Driving the news: A federal judge in Oregon temporarily blocked Trump's deployment of the National Guard Sunday evening for the second time, after the president announced plans to send troops from California to Portland.
- In addition to California and Oregon suing Trump over his actions, Illinois filed a lawsuit on Monday after he said he was sending 300 members of the National Guard to Chicago.
What they're saying: "So far it hasn't been necessary, but we have an Insurrection Act for a reason," Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday.
- "If people were being killed, and courts were holding us up, or governors or mayors were holding us up, sure, I do that."
The bottom line: If Trump were to use the Insurrection Act, the National Guard would be allowed the full law enforcement powers of local police officers.
Flashback: The last president to formally invoke the law was former President George H.W. Bush during the 1992 Los Angeles riots, with California's consent.
- When Trump used protective powers to send troops to LA over the summer, they were restricted to protecting federal property and assisting federal agents, but military officials were prohibited from making arrests.
Go deeper: MAGA calls for Trump to overrule judges on National Guard deployments
