Constitutional Crisis Looms Over Federal Agents in Portland
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A potential constitutional crisis is looming over the actions of federal officers at protests in Oregon’s largest city that have been hailed by President Donald Trump but were done without local consent.
The standoff could escalate there and elsewhere as Trump says he plans to send federal agents to other cities, too.
In Portland, protesters crowded in front of the federal courthouse and the city’s Justice Center late Monday night, before authorities cleared them out.
State and local authorities are awaiting a ruling in a lawsuit filed late last week.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security was planning to deploy about 150 of its agents to Chicago, according to an official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.