WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump confirmed plans to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago in an unprecedented move to address urban crime.
“We’re going in. I didn’t say when, but we’re going in,“ Trump told White House reporters on Tuesday.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson immediately condemned the decision as a political distraction tactic.
“He just wants his own secret police force that will do publicity stunts whenever his poll numbers are sinking,“ Johnson stated.
The announcement follows a federal judge’s ruling blocking similar military deployment in California earlier that day.
Legal experts anticipate constitutional challenges regarding presidential authority over state National Guard units.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker revealed receiving information about federal agents and military vehicles being staged for deployment.
Pritzker confirmed the administration was preparing Texas National Guard personnel alongside multiple federal agencies.
Trump asserted his authority to proceed regardless of state cooperation, extending the initiative to Baltimore.
Chicago police officials previously stated they would not collaborate with any deployed National Guard troops.
The president’s authority over Chicago remains limited compared to Washington D.C., which lacks statehood status.
Legal challenges would likely focus on Section 12406 provisions governing interstate National Guard deployments.
Crime statistics show declining homicide rates in both Chicago and Baltimore this year.
Baltimore reported its lowest homicide count in over fifty years with eighty-four cases this year.
The deployment plan represents Trump’s continued expansion of military presence in domestic policing. – Reuters
