Department of Defense leadership as high as Secretary Mark Esper voiced concerns over the federal law enforcement agents wearing multicam uniforms on the streets of Portland, Oregon. Now, the Department of Homeland Security says it's working to have those uniforms switched.
Acting Deputy Homeland Security Secretary Ken Cuccinelli explained that those agents in Portland seen wearing multicam uniforms came from Customs and Border Protection -- they were wearing what they came with.
"That was CBP officers whose normal duty stations are along the border, and they came with what they had," Cuccinelli told Congress during a hearing on Tuesday. "Now we have moved as quickly as we could to procure for them what you think of as the solid green CBP uniform."
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It became apparent in the early days of protests across the nation in June that just because someone was wearing a military uniform didn't mean they were military, but that confusion was causing issues.
"(Secretary of Defense Mark Esper) has expressed his concern that in some cases, law enforcement appropriately performing law enforcement duties were misconstrued as military personnel,” Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said at a Pentagon press briefing in late July. "I don’t have any guidelines from the secretary ... but he has expressed an interest in the topic."
Military leaders are concerned over multicam-clad federal officers deployed in response to protests
As videos of individuals in military tactical gear in Portland beating protestors and deploying tear gas spread, the DoD was eager to clarify -- these are not military personnel.
"I can say unequivocally there are no Department of Defense assets that are deployed to or are pending deployment or are looking to deploy to Portland at this time,” Hoffman confirmed at the same briefing.
"We want a system where people can tell the difference," he added.
Members of Congress similarly voiced concerns.
“We find it particularly troubling that in Portland, many of these federal officers have apparently been patrolling the streets in unmarked vehicles and arresting protestors off the street – in some cases without probable cause and without reading their Miranda rights – all while donning what appears to be military uniforms," reads a letter signed by Reps Adam Smith, D-Wash., Bennie G. Thompson, D-Miss., and Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y.
"These alarming actions beg a number of serious questions," the letter continues. "Was it the intent of the Trump Administration to make it seem as though the U.S. military is being deployed to control a U.S. city? Are they completely ignorant about the optics of the situation?"
The presence of federal law enforcement agents in the Oregon capital raised concern for reasons beyond just their uniforms. Sent by President Donald Trump, both the governor of Oregon and the mayor of Portland pushed back against the federal presence. Last week, Trump said he reached an agreement with Oregon Gov. Kate Brown to stand federal law enforcement down to allow Portland's local law enforcement the opportunity to end the protests. If they failed to do so, Trump threatened to activate the National Guard.
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In the days since federal law enforcement was replaced by local law enforcement, the protests have been described as "peaceful."
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