A federal officer aims a silenced assault rifle with laser sights at protesters. Thousands of activists rally outside the Hatfield Federal Courthouse in Portland, Oregon on the night of July 25, 2020. The activists were protesting the presence of federal officers in the city, and continuing the Black Lives Matter protests that started after the murder of George Floyd.

Portland has been roiled by nightly protests following the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. President Donald Trump said he sent federal agents to Oregon's largest city to halt the unrest but state and local officials say they are making the situation worse.

The clashes in Portland have further inflamed the nation's political tensions and triggered a crisis over the limits of federal power as Trump moves to send U.S. officers to other Democratic-led cities he says are violent.