President Donald Trump expressed on Monday his willingness to consider using the Insurrection Act “if it was necessary,” especially if facing delays by the courts or local authorities in his efforts to deploy the National Guard.

“I’d do it if it was necessary. So far it hasn’t been necessary. But we have an Insurrection Act for a reason,” Trump mentioned to reporters in the Oval Office when asked about the conditions under which he might implement the seldom-used 19th-century law.

“If I had to enact it, I’d proceed. If there were lives at risk and courts or governors or mayors hindered us, surely, I’d proceed. Ensuring that people aren’t harmed is critical. We must guarantee our cities are secure,” he continued.

The Insurrection Act of 1807 permits the president to deploy the U.S. military for civilian law enforcement under specific situations. It was last activated during the 1992 Los Angeles riots.

Trump was speaking about his efforts to federalize troops and crack down on crime in Democratic-run cities.

A federal judge in Oregon on Sunday obstructed the Trump administration from deploying federalized National Guard forces from California or other states to Portland’s streets.

U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, had also blocked the administration from deploying Oregon National Guard troops in Portland.

“Portland’s been in turmoil for years, and there hasn’t been much effort in saving it,” Trump remarked on Monday. “We have to focus on saving something else, as that seems like insurrection to me. It appears to be criminal insurrection indeed.”

Trump and his allies similarly referred to protesters opposing Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids in Los Angeles as “insurrectionists,” and Trump offered a similar answer in June when he was asked about any plans to invoke the Insurrection Act. “Depends on whether or not there’s an insurrection,” he said at the time, without ruling out the possibility of using it in the future.

A key Trump ally argued earlier Monday that such action is needed now.

In a text message to NBC News before Trump’s Oval Office remarks, former White House strategist Steve Bannon said Trump “needs to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 immediately and deploy active duty U.S. Army personnel and assets to Portland and Chicago — he needs to put Pritzker and Newsom in their place.”

California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, both Democrats, have opposed Trump’s National Guard efforts in their states.

At a news conference earlier Monday, Pritzker suggested that Trump is trying to sow unrest so he can invoke the Insurrection Act.

“The Trump administration is following a playbook cause chaos, create fear and confusion, make it seem like peaceful protesters are a mob by firing gas pellets and tear gas canisters at them,” Pritzker said. “Why? To create the pretext for invoking the Insurrection Act so that he can send military troops to our city.”

Illinois sued Monday to block the Trump administration from deploying federalized National Guard troops to Chicago. A judge declined to immediately block the administration’s move and instead scheduled a hearing for Thursday.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement that Pritzker had failed to address violence in his state.

“Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets,” Jackson said. “President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities.”

During his first term, despite nudging from allies, Trump ultimately did not invoke the Insurrection Act, which the White House said was a possibility in response to demonstrations stemming from the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May 2020.