Federal Judge Hears Challenge to Trump’s Deployment of Troops to Washington

The Washington government argues the president lacks legal authority to send troops to patrol the capital city.

National Guard troops congregate at the entrance to Union Station in Washington, Aug. 20, 2025. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, FIle

A federal judge in Washington on Oct. 24 grappled with a challenge to President Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops in the nation’s capital.

Meanwhile, in a separate challenge to West Virginia’s deployment of its National Guard troops to the District of Columbia, a state judge in Charleston, West Virginia, adjourned a hearing to next month at which point he will continue to take evidence in the case.