Trump's threat to invoke Insurrection Act intensifies battle over his authority

He alludes to possibly using law to sidestep court rulings blocking Guard deployment

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Hundreds of Texas National Guard soldiers gathered on Oct 7 at an army facility outside Chicago, as US President Donald Trump's threat to invoke an anti-insurrection law and deploy troops to more US cities intensified the battle over limits to his authority.

The Republican President on Oct 7 again left open the possibility that he might use the centuries-old Insurrection Act to sidestep any court rulings blocking the dispatch of Guard troops to Democrat-led cities, over the objections of local and state officials.

A federal judge has temporarily barred Guard troops from heading to Portland, Oregon, though a separate judge has allowed for now a deployment to proceed in Chicago, where federal agents have embarked on a sweeping crackdown on illegal immigration.

"Well, it's been invoked before," Mr Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

He has claimed that troops are needed to protect federal property and personnel in carrying out their duties, as well as assisting an overall drive to suppress crime.

The law, which gives the president authority to deploy the military to quell unrest in an emergency, has typically been used only in extreme cases, and almost always at the invitation of state governors.

The Act was last invoked by President George H.W. Bush during the Los Angeles riots of 1992.

Under federal law, National Guard and other military troops are generally prohibited from conducting civilian law enforcement.

But the Insurrection Act operates as an exception to that rule and would give troops the power to directly police and arrest people.

Using the Act would represent a significant escalation of Mr Trump's effort to deploy the military to Democratic cities.