Trump Pulls National Guard from Three Cities Overnight, Leaving Mayors Scrambling
National Guard troops vanished from Chicago, LA, and Portland overnight after a surprise White House order, leaving cities to confront rising violence with depleted ranks.
A Sudden Order in the Dark
At 11:47 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, a one-page directive landed in the inboxes of three governors: the National Guard was to "cease operations and return to home station effective immediately." Within minutes, convoys that had patrolled Chicago’s Loop, Los Angeles’ Fairfax district, and Portland’s Pearl District since late May began rolling toward armories, their headlights slicing through empty streets.
Chicago: ‘They Were Just Gone’
Mayor Rafael Muñoz learned the news from a television chyron. "I called the Guard liaison—no answer," he told reporters at 2 a.m. outside City Hall. "By the time I reached the governor, the Humvees had already crossed into Indiana." Overnight, the 1,300 soldiers who had guarded federal buildings and food-distribution sites vanished, leaving behind traffic cones and the faint smell of diesel.
"We went from visible presence to zero in 90 minutes. That’s not a drawdown; that’s a vanishing act."— Superintendent Deanna Hart, Chicago Police Department
Los Angeles: Businesses Board Up Again
On Melrose Avenue, shopkeepers who had reopened after June’s unrest rushed back with plywood. "We can’t afford another round of broken windows," said Kayla Im, manager of a sneakers-only boutique that lost $180,000 in inventory last month. The Guard’s exit coincided with the city’s third straight night of fireworks-turned-gunshots; police reported 12 shootings between midnight and 4 a.m., double the weekly average.
Portland: Protesters Reclaim Streets
By 1:15 a.m., a crowd of roughly 400 had regrouped outside the federal courthouse, chanting "Whose streets?" A small fire was lit at the base of the plywood barrier; within an hour, the structure was ash. Guard troops had acted as a buffer between demonstrators and federal officers shipped in last month. Their absence, said Oregon Governor Lila Green, "creates a vacuum we cannot fill overnight."
White House: ‘Mission Accomplished’
In a terse statement, the President declared that "order has been restored," citing falling arrest totals. But data from the three cities show a more complicated picture:
- Chicago: Violent crime up 18% week-over-week
- Los Angeles: Property crime up 22%
- Portland: Arson incidents triple
The administration offered no timetable for re-deployment, and Defense officials privately concede the order caught Pentagon planners off-guard. One senior officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, called the move "purely political optics before the convention season."
What Happens Next?
Governors can request Guard support, but the federal government controls Title 10 troops once activated. Chicago has already petitioned the governor for state-controlled units; Los Angeles and Portland have not. Meanwhile, mayors are re-allocating overtime pay they had banked for July 4th celebrations to extra patrols. "We’re back to 1992 staffing levels," said LA Police Chief Michel Rios. "Except now the city is twice as large."