Oregon Democrats are challenging President Donald Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard to Portland, claiming that the administration is relying on outdated footage from the 2020 George Floyd riots to justify the move.

However, recent testimony from local residents and court evidence contradicts those assertions, pointing to ongoing disturbances near Portland’s ICE facility.

CNN reported that Trump began discussing the deployment after Fox News aired a segment showing clashes near the facility.

The segment included a mix of recent video and older downtown riot footage.

While critics have suggested the administration was misled, they did not highlight that the request for assistance originated with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who has been in direct contact with the facility regarding security concerns.

Oregon has filed a lawsuit against the administration ahead of the Guard’s expected arrival by Thursday.

In response, one South Portland resident directly affected by the nightly unrest issued a statement thanking Trump for acting where local authorities have not.

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“For over 100 days, my community has faced relentless harassment, robbery, assault, and racial violence at the hands of these protesters. Day and night, the danger has continued while Portland police and city leaders refused to act, refused to protect us, and refused to address our legitimate concerns. The people of South Portland have been abandoned,” the resident said in a statement shared with the Post Millennial.

“Therefore, I want to thank President Trump for responding to our plight by sending the National Guard. Just as President Eisenhower acted in Little Rock to uphold the rights and safety of citizens when local authorities refused, President Trump has stepped in where Portland’s leaders failed. He has provided the security and relief our community needed but was denied by those entrusted to protect us. God Bless you President Trump!”

The Portland resident who went viral after confronting Antifa outside the ICE facility in Portland has issued a statement to @TPostMillennial on President Trump sending in troops:

“For over 100 days, my community has faced relentless harassment, robbery, assault, and racial… https://t.co/QjB1GZGbB0

— Katie Daviscourt 📸 (@KatieDaviscourt) September 30, 2025

The resident also pushed back against Portland Mayor Keith Wilson, who claimed Trump was relying on outdated video from 2020.

“The Mayor has publicly claimed that President Trump is being ‘misled’ by 2020 footage. That statement is false. I personally filmed some of the footage at issue. The remainder was filmed by other individuals. Every piece of the contemporary footage was introduced as evidence in my lawsuit against the City, and in court, all of it was formally authenticated under oath without objection. In other words, the City itself confirmed on the record that every portion of the footage is genuine. For the Mayor now to assert or imply that the footage is from 2020, or that its truth is in doubt, is not simply mistaken — it is a knowing misrepresentation of facts already established in a court of law,” the statement said.

Additionally, the resident lambasted Portland Mayor Keith Wilson for falsely claiming footage from the 100-day-plus unlawful demonstrations is from 2020, adding in the statement:

“The Mayor has publicly claimed that President Trump is being ‘misled’ by 2020 footage.

That…

— Katie Daviscourt 📸 (@KatieDaviscourt) September 30, 2025

The resident’s name was not disclosed in the latest statement, but the description matches a lawsuit filed by Portland resident Cloud Elvengrail.

According to a July report from KGW, Elvengrail lives across from the ICE facility and near a Tesla showroom. She has described her home as “akin to a torture chamber” due to the nightly noise from bullhorns, sirens, bells, and engines.

Court filings described one June incident where she suffered ear bleeding after exposure to the noise.

“She felt pressure in her left ear… When she reached up to touch her ear, she saw her finger was covered in blood,” the complaint said.

Elvengrail alleged that protesters threatened her, attempted to have her evicted, and created a hostile environment that local law enforcement failed to address.

Despite her testimony, the court ruled against her claims.

The unrest outside Portland’s ICE facility has been ongoing for months, with repeated reports of noise disturbances, vandalism, and confrontations.

While state leaders move forward with legal challenges against the Trump administration, residents closest to the protests continue to describe a deteriorating situation that has disrupted their lives and left them without effective protection from local authorities.

The arrival of federal troops later this week is expected to intensify the standoff between the administration and Oregon state officials.

Whether the deployment will restore order or spark further conflict remains to be seen, but residents near the ICE facility have made clear their frustration with city and state leadership.