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Good morning, Northwest.
We’re back in your inbox after the holiday.
It’s now been two months since President Donald Trump ordered the National Guard to Portland.
No troops are on the ground, and the legal wrangling over the matter has slowed to a crawl. OPB’s Conrad Wilson leads off this morning’s newsletter with where things stand.
Also this morning, preservationists urge Portland State to preserve two historic buildings slated for demolition. And Washington scientists attempt to solve one of the most puzzling questions of the universe.
Here’s your First Look at Friday’s news.
—Bradley W. Parks
FILE - Federal officers confront protesters at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility, Portland, Ore., Oct. 4, 2025.
Eden McCall / OPB
Where things stand 2 months after Trump ordered troops to Portland
As President Donald Trump’s legal fight to deploy the National Guard in Portland enters its third month, the blistering pace of emergency motions and expedited hearings has slowed.
The U.S. Supreme Court is considering a similar case out of Chicago, where the president is also attempting to send troops.
Whatever the high court rules could have a significant impact on Oregon. (Conrad Wilson)
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A student walks by Portland State University's Montgomery Court on Nov. 4, 2025. The building is slated for demolition to make way for a new dormitory.
Tiffany Camhi / OPB
3 things to know this morning
- Portland State University trustees have approved a plan to build new student housing and demolish two historic buildings. Historians, students and other local groups are trying to change their minds. (Tiffany Camhi)
- Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek recently announced that a group of philanthropic donors matched the state’s $6 million to help address food insecurity. (Lauren Dake)
- Earlier this week, the Portland Clean Energy Fund announced $64.4 million in grants for dozens of community projects aimed at lowering greenhouse gas emissions. (Monica Samayoa)
A portion of downtown Vancouver's Main Street closed as part of the Main Street Promise redevelopment project on Nov. 24, 2025.
Erik Neumann / OPB
Headlines from around the Northwest
- Multnomah County DA unveils new plan for deflection program — more prosecutions (Joni Auden Land)
- Oregon AG Dan Rayfield sues Trump over latest changes to SNAP benefits (Lauren Dake)
- Vancouver’s Main Street redevelopment pauses during holidays to support small businesses (Erik Neumann)
- Visit Bend opens grant application window for projects that serve tourists and locals alike (Kathryn Styer Martínez)
- Portland airport officials say Sunday and Monday are the busiest days for post-Thanksgiving travel (Kyra Buckley)
Listen in on OPB’s daily conversation
“Think Out Loud” airs at noon and 8 p.m. weekdays on OPB Radio, opb.org and the OPB News app. Today’s planned topics (subject to change):
- Ken Burns discusses his new documentary about the American Revolution
Researchers install the copper box containing the detector modules. Surrounding the box is shielding made of lead from ancient Rome — the team chose lead so old that any radioactive contaminants within it would have already decayed.
Courtesy DAMIC-M Collaboration
Northwest scientists develop a dark matter detector to study one of the biggest mysteries of the universe
The universe is full of mysteries that scientists have not yet been able to solve. And a big one is dark matter.
There are not enough objects in space like stars, planets and cosmic dust to creat the amount of gravity observed on a galactic scale.
So scientists posit that there is a lot of matter out in the universe that we can’t see, which they call dark matter.
Physicists from the University of Washington made a prototype dark matter detector at an underground lab a mile below the French Alps, and they say it may be the best shot at answering the dark matter question. (Jes Burns)
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