An appeals court on Wednesday (Dec. 17) cleared the way for President Donald Trump to keep National Guard troops stationed in Washington, D.C., giving the administration a major legal victory in growing scrutiny of the long-term troop presence in the capital.
In a unanimous ruling, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit stayed a lower court ruling that found the deployment was likely illegal and ordered the removal of thousands of Guard members from city streets.
An appeals court ruled that the Trump administration is likely to succeed in arguing that the president’s August 11 deployment of the D.C. National Guard fell within his authority as commander in chief and was authorized under District of Columbia law.
The panel’s decision indefinitely suspends the lower court order, which had previously been temporarily frozen while the appeals court considered whether to extend the stay.
“Deep disruption” without intervention
Justice Patricia Millett, writing for the jury, said it would cause serious disruption if the lower court’s decision went into effect.
“Without the court’s intervention, the lives of thousands of service members who have been deployed for four months would be profoundly disrupted,” Millett wrote.
She added that the deployment involved “a strong and significant interest in protecting federal government functions and property in the nation’s capital.”
The soldiers will remain until the end of February
According to an appeals court order, President Trump can keep members of the National Guard in Washington DC until at least the end of February, pending further court proceedings.
Trump initially deployed hundreds of D.C. National Guard troops over the summer as part of a broader federal law enforcement surge aimed at beefing up security in the capital.
Renewed control after shooting
The continued presence of several thousand Guard members has drawn renewed attention in recent weeks following the shooting of two National Guard members last month, an incident that left one dead and another critically injured.
This episode intensified the debate about the risks and the need for widespread deployment.
Wider legal disputes are ongoing
The D.C. case unfolds alongside a series of separate legal challenges to Trump’s troop deployments in other Democratic-led cities and states across the US, underscoring a broader national debate over presidential powers, federal law enforcement and the use of military force domestically.
