EXCLUSIVE: I Just Spoke with Oregon's AG After He Beat Trump in Court

Oregon Attorney General spoke with the MeidasTouch Network moments after a Trump-appointed judge temporarily blocked Trump's deployment of National Guard troops in Portland.

I just spoke with Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield moments after Judge Karin Immergut issued her powerful ruling blocking Donald Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in Portland. Watch the video right above or click here. The sense of relief, and resolve, was palpable. For months, Trump has been attempting to normalize the idea of using the United States military as his own domestic police force. Today, the courts reminded him yet again that we are still a nation of laws, and he is not a king.

“This is a huge win at this moment in our democracy,” Rayfield told me. “This is a president that is normalizing the use of the United States military in our country… So to get this strong of a ruling out today for the public to see it—it’s incredibly important.”

The federal judge who delivered this rebuke wasn’t some so-called “lefty liberal” jurist. She was appointed by Donald Trump himself, handpicked for her prosecutorial experience and credentials. “Hopefully this will kind of serve as a message to folks,” Rayfield said. “Hey, the rule of law still stands in this country.”

For years now, Trump and his MAGA enablers have been trying to dismantle the very concept of rule of law. They’ve attacked judges, prosecutors, journalists, and election officials, trying to replace evidence with propaganda and governance with grievance. That’s why these wins are so important.

I noted to Rayfield how Immergut’s order cut through Trump’s manufactured hysteria about “war-ravaged” Portland. Trump’s lawyers came to court armed not with evidence but with posts from Truth Social. Seriously, he tried to use his own disinformation platform as “evidence.” Rayfield recalled how surreal it was to watch federal lawyers attempt to use those posts as facts. “The first thing that kind of told you maybe the federal government isn’t doing so hot is when they start off some of their arguments talking about Truth Social as their facts,” he said. “And it actually got a comment from the judge: ‘Is this really how you’re going to move forward?’”

How embarrassing. The President of the United States and his Justice Department walked into federal court basically armed with memes. And a Trump-appointed judge had to remind them that the law doesn’t bend to fantasy.

Judge Immergut’s ruling was a civics lesson. As she wrote, “This is a nation of constitutional law, not martial law.” The opinion underscored that America has a “long-standing and foundational tradition of resistance to government overreach, especially in the form of military intrusion into civil affairs.”

Rayfield called it “a wonderful education about the role between the federal government, the states, and us as citizens.” He pointed to a passage that encapsulates what’s at stake: “Whether we choose to follow what the Constitution mandates with respect to these relationships goes to the heart of what it means to live under the rule of law in the United States.”

He’s right. These may sound like “wonky words,” as he put it, but in this political moment, when a wannabe strongman is trying to use federal troops as props in his authoritarian theater, those words are a lifeline for democracy.

When I asked Rayfield what comes next, he explained that the restraining order lasts for 14 days, with hearings scheduled later this month to determine whether the injunction should become permanent. “The federal government is really not going to like this opinion,” he said, “especially in light of what they’re trying to do in other states right now.”

Before we wrapped up, I gave Rayfield the last word. His message wasn’t partisan, but patriotic. “It’s real easy right now to get down,” he told our audience. “You see the attacking of the independent judiciary, the attacking of the free press, the attacking of the integrity of our elections. You see the normalization of military [force]. But I think we all have to work toward something—believe what this country really means, what our states really mean to all of us.”

This was a good ruling for democracy. But as Rayfield reminded us, there will be tough days ahead. What matters is that we keep fighting, peacefully, lawfully, and relentlessly, for the ideals that make America worth defending. Because in the end, the rule of law only stands if we do.

Remember to watch my interview with AG Rayfield above or by clicking here. Add the MeidasTouch Podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify for more breaking news and interviews. And consider joining now as a paid subscriber to this Substack to continue to support our reporting.