Oregon Senators Demand Probe Into 'Paramilitary Assaults' By 'Occupying Army'

Oregons U.S. senators and two representatives demanded an investigation Friday into paramilitary assaults in Portland by Department of Homeland Security forces that the lawmakers say have invaded the city and are snatching protesters off the streets in unmarked vans .

The stunned, angry reactions followed reports earlier this week that troops in military fatigues with police patches and no other obvious identification grabbed and detained anti-racism protesters in Portland. The squads which were dispatched by DHS have been manhandling protesters since at least Tuesday , Oregon Public Broadcasting reported. Its not clear why Portland was targeted by the DHS crackdown.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) blasted the paramilitary assaults by an occupying army.

Its painfully clear this administration is focused purely on escalating violence without answering my repeated requests for why this expeditionary force is in Portland and under what constitutional authority, he said in a statement from members of Oregons congressional delegation demanding an investigation. The Office of Inspector General must investigate Trumps assault on Americans constitutional rights now.

Fellow Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley accused Homeland Security and the Justice Department of engaging in acts that are horrific and outrageous in our constitutional democratic republic.

Oregons Democratic Reps. Earl Blumenauer and Suzanne Bonamici also supported the joint statement.

UPDATE: Members of our Oregon Congressional delegation just announced that we are demanding an immediate Inspector General investigation into the violent actions of unrequested federal law enforcement officials here in Portland.

We need answers NOW.

Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) July 17, 2020","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Earl Blumenauer","author_url":"https://twitter.com/repblumenauer","cache_age":86400,"description":"UPDATE: Members of our Oregon Congressional delegation just announced that we are demanding an immediate Inspector General investigation into the violent actions of unrequested federal law enforcement officials here in Portland.We need answers NOW. 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UPDATE: Members of our Oregon Congressional delegation just announced that we are demanding an immediate Inspector General investigation into the violent actions of unrequested federal law enforcement officials here in Portland.

We need answers NOW.
Earl Blumenauer (@repblumenauer) July 17, 2020

Grabbing peaceful protesters off the streets of Portland and putting them in unmarked cars to detain them is unconscionable and terrifying. It is not de-escalation, it is not the Oregon way, and it must stop.https://t.co/fg5tg9573h

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Grabbing peaceful protesters off the streets of Portland and putting them in unmarked cars to detain them is unconscionable and terrifying. It is not de-escalation, it is not the Oregon way, and it must stop.https://t.co/fg5tg9573h
Suzanne Bonamici (@RepBonamici) July 16, 2020

For her part, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) denounced the squads as political theater by President Donald Trump and his acting Homeland Security chief Chad Wolf to provoke violence and terrorize Oregonians.

Wolf has insisted his forces are battling violent anarchists and that Portland has been under siege for 47 days a statement Brown dismissed in a Washington Post interview Friday as a fabrication and a deliberate effort to provoke .

In a statement on the DHS website, Wolfs grievances about violent anarchists in Portland consisted largely of a long list of graffiti at various sites in the city, damaged fences, and throwing animal seed at officers.