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President Donald Trump said he was considering sending National Guard troops to Portland, Oregon, a decision prompted by a television report that mistakenly presented footage of the 2020 mass protests as if they had taken place this summer.
“I saw today, I didn’t know it was going on, but Portland is unbelievable, what’s going on there,” Trump told reporters, claiming to have seen “the destruction of the city.” In reality, there have been only a few dozen protesters outside an ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) facility in Portland this year, compared to the thousands who took to the streets after the killing of George Floyd in 2020.
Television disinformation and Trump's "parallel reality"
Trump did not cite the source of the information, but a Fox News story on Thursday mixed footage of a small protest with video from 2020, where a demonstrator, Christopher David, was seen being sprayed with tear gas - incorrectly presenting it as having taken place in June 2025.
Asked by reporters, Trump said: "When I saw it on television, it looked like this had been going on for years. We'll stop it very easily. If we go to Portland, we'll wipe them out."
He called the group of protesters "terrorists paid by the radical left," repeating 2020 conspiracy theories about "antifa," without presenting any evidence.
Local authorities' reaction
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson responded by rejecting any federal intervention: "We are proud that the city's police have protected freedom of expression, managing cases of violence and property damage. Portland remains a sanctuary city and will protect our community and rights through legal means."
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield also warned that the state is prepared to stop any "overreach" by the Trump administration: "The president has power, but he has to stay within constitutional limits. If he oversteps his bounds, we will hold him accountable."
A political threat with a propaganda background
While the reality in Portland is quite different, with rebuilt buildings and a downtown free of mass protests, Trump continues to describe the city as a "protest-burning hell," using manipulated media imagery to justify a possible federal intervention. / The Guardian
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