President Donald Trump is setting his sights on Chicago as the next city for a federal crackdown, following recent military interventions in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. According to a report from The Washington Post, the Pentagon has been drawing up plans that could see thousands of National Guard troops deployed to the city as soon as next month.
The report suggests that Chicago could serve as a model for similar operations in other parts of the country, marking a significant expansion of Trump’s federal intervention strategy. Currently, 2,000 National Guard troops remain stationed in Washington, D.C. after Trump ordered a surge of federal forces earlier this summer.
The president has defended these moves as necessary to combat crime, though critics argue the measures are politically motivated. “Chicago’s a mess. You have an incompetent mayor. Grossly incompetent,” Trump told reporters on Friday. “And we’ll straighten that one out probably next. That’ll be our next one after this. And it won’t even be tough.”
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker pushed back strongly against Trump’s remarks. Posting to X on Saturday, Pritzker said, “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.”
He continued, “The safety of the people of Illinois is always my top priority. 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.” Pritzker accused Trump of attempting to “manufacture a crisis” for political gain.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also voiced his opposition, warning of “grave concerns” over what he described as the potential “unlawful deployment” of troops. “The problem with the president’s approach is that it is uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound,” Johnson said.
According to The Washington Post, the planning for Chicago has been underway for months and may be tied to expanded ICE operations nationwide. Federal officials have already linked sanctuary cities like Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, and D.C. to what they call weak enforcement of immigration laws.
But on Friday, a federal judge ruled the Trump administration cannot withhold funding from dozens of sanctuary cities, including Chicago and Los Angeles, over their immigration policies—dealing a blow to one of the administration’s legal strategies.