Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, seen here in East St. Louis, Ill in July of 2024, is to speak Monday about the possible deployment of National Guard troops in Chicago. File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI | License Photo
Gov. JB Pritzker and Attorney General Kwame Raoul will speak Monday in response to plans by President Donald Trump to deploy National Guard troops in Chicago.
Both AG Kwame Raoul and Gov. JB Pritzker have already expressed they are clearly against such a deployment.
“The State of Illinois at this time has received no requests or outreach from the federal government asking if we need assistance, and we have made no requests for federal intervention,” Pritzker posted to X Saturday.
“There is no emergency that warrants the president of the United States federalizing the [Illinois National Guard], deploying the National Guard from other states, or sending active-duty military within our own borders,” he continued.
“To be clear: We have made no such request for the type of federal intervention we have seen in Los Angeles or Washington D.C.,” Raoul said in a press release Friday. “There is no emergency in the state of Illinois.”
Earlier on Friday, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he plans to crack down on crime both there and in New York City.
“We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” Trump said. “Chicago’s a mess. You have an incompetent mayor [Brandon Johnson]. Grossly incompetent and we’ll straighten that one out probably next. That will be our next one after this. And it won’t even be tough.”
“What the President is proposing would be the most flagrant violation of our Constitution in the 21st Century,” Johnson said Sunday on X. “The City of Chicago does not need a military occupation.
The Washington Post reported that the Pentagon will mobilize a few thousand National Guard troops by September and has also discussed the possible use of active-duty troops.
“We won’t speculate on further operations,” said a Pentagon spokesperson in a statement. “The Department is a planning organization and is continuously, working with other agency partners on plans to protect federal assets and personnel.”
“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 further posted online. “We’ll continue to follow the law, stand up for the sovereignty of our state, and protect Illinoisans.”
