As federalized National Guard troops prepare to deploy in Portland , the Trump administration is invoking a narrative of a city wracked by “Antifa-led hellfire.”

“It’s obvious what’s happening in Portland isn’t protest,” the White House said Tuesday in a press release. “It’s premeditated anarchy that has scarred the city for years — leaving officers battered, citizens terrorized, and property defaced.”

Demonstrators have gathered in front of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in South Portland since June to protest the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, but the turnout typically amounted to a few dozen people before Trump’s announcement Saturday.

Elected leaders and officials in Portland and Oregon have urged Trump to reconsider sending troops to the c

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