Trump’s National Guard Deployment In D.C. Was Illegal, Judge Rules

ByAntonio Pequeño IV,

Forbes Staff.

President Donald Trump’s deployment of over 2,000 National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., was illegal, a federal judge ruled Thursday, siding with local officials as troops near their fourth month of deployment in the city.

Judge Jia Cobb said the Department of Defense defendants “exceeded the bounds of their authority” when they deployed the National Guard for “non-military, crime deterrence missions” without a request from Washington, D.C., authorities.

Cobb’s ruling does not mean troops have to be pulled from the capital, noting she has only been tasked with determining the legality of the deployment.