type: timeline_event
Approximately 500 National Guard troops began returning from federal service to their respective states after the Supreme Court's December 23, 2025 ruling blocked Trump's deployment to Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland. U.S. Northern Command announced the demobilization as Trump acknowledged defeat in a December 31 Truth Social post, though he pledged to return "in a much different and stronger form, when crime begins to soar again."
California Governor Gavin Newsom declared "President Trump has finally admitted defeat" following the 6-3 Supreme Court ruling that prevented the administration from federalizing state National Guard units over governors' objections. About 100 National Guard members returned from Portland to Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas on January 15.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson noted the irony of Trump's crime rhetoric: the city's crime rate had actually dropped as federal and local investments in targeted violence intervention programs showed results. However, the Justice Department had recently cut over $800 million in grant funding for such violence prevention efforts, undermining the very programs that were working.
The Department of Justice sought to settle the remaining lawsuit over National Guard troops in Chicago, asking a federal judge to pause proceedings while settlement terms were negotiated. The episode marked a rare legal defeat for the administration's domestic deployment strategy, though Trump's threat to invoke the Insurrection Act in Minneapolis just weeks later showed the administration continued exploring military options against cities led by Democratic officials.