Oct. 4 (UPI) -- Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth considered deploying the U.S. Army's 82nd Airborne Division to Portland, Ore., amid ongoing violent protests by Antifa and others.
Deputy Homeland Security Investigations Adviser Anthony Salisbury exchanged messages in a "crowded, public space" that indicated he was considering sending the elite paratroopers to Portland to address what President Donald Trump has called "lawless mayhem," The Minnesota Star Tribune and The Guardian reported.
The Star Tribune obtained images of the messages that it says were exchanged last weekend.
Instead of deploying the airborne unit, the Trump administration has deployed National Guard troops to Oregon's largest city, where Antifa militants have protested and at times rioted and attacked an Immigration and Customs facility, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
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