President Trump Monday threatened to order National Guard troops to Chicago in a widening crackdown on big cities that started with Washington, D.C. — and Democratic leaders pushed back.
Trump sang the praises of surging military troops into the streets of the nation’s capital and threatened to expand the operation to Chicago and beyond during a White House ceremony where he signed several executive orders aimed at battling crime.
“We can go anywhere on 24 hours notice,” Trump said.
“We want to go on to other places,” Trump added. “Chicago, Illinois, is a disaster….Chicago is a killing field.”
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker countered that there is no pressing need for troops or other federal law enforcement, especially with crime down sharply in Chicago and other cities nationwide.
Pritzker was expected to hold a press conference along with the state’s attorney general to push back against Trump’s possible plan to declare some sort of emergency and send troops into the streets of the nation’s third largest city.
“Donald Trump is attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform, and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he’s causing families,” Pritzker tweeted over the weekend. “We’ll continue to follow the law, stand up for the sovereignty of our state, and protect Illinoisans.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said the city doesn’t need “a military occupation” and would sue to block one. He said there has been no communication from the White House about a possible military deployment.
“This is not the role of our military. The brave men and women who signed up to serve our country did not sign up to occupy American cities,” Johnson told NBC News on Monday.
Trump has suggested for several days that Chicago will likely be the next target of his efforts to crack down on crime, homelessness and illegal immigration, although he has also hinted at federal action against Baltimore and New York.
“I think Chicago will be our next,” Trump told reporters at the White House, later adding, “And then we’ll help with New York.”
The comments came as the Pentagon began ordering troops in Washington to carry firearms, though there have been no overt indications they have faced threats that would require them to carry weapons.
Trump has repeatedly derided some of the nation’s largest cities, which are run by Democrats, mostly with Black mayors and majority-minority populations.
He singled out Chicago on Friday, calling it a “mess” and saying residents there are “screaming for us to come” despite sharply declining crime rates.
Trump has also unleashed a war of words with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, who taunted Trump with an invitation to join him on an inspection of local and state law enforcement in Baltimore.
“He’s doing a bad job,” Trump said.
The White House already clashed with state and local officials in California when he ordered the National Guard to patrol Los Angeles during protests against his immigration crackdown.
Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom sued to block the deployment, which Trump claimed was due to a public safety emergency. The case is still pending in federal courts.
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