A federal judge on Thursday, October 9, ordered a temporary halt to President Donald Trump's deployment of hundreds of National Guard troops in the Chicago area as part of his sweeping crime and immigration crackdown. Trump's administration has argued the troops are necessary to protect immigration agents and facilities in America's third-largest city, depicting it as a "war zone."
But local Democratic officials have said police and other law enforcement are perfectly sufficient, while arguing that Trump is purposefully provoking protests with its heavy-handed operations.
In her ruling from the bench, District Judge April Perry said she had doubts about the Trump administration's reliability and worried the troops' presence would "only add fuel to the fire," the Chicago Tribune reported. She ordered an immediate halt to the troop deployment, lasting until October 23, rejecting the government's argument that Trump cannot be second-guessed over such matters.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, who has accused Trump of unconstitutional authoritarianism, hailed the ruling, saying on X: "Donald Trump is not a king – and his administration is not above the law."
At the same time, a three-judge appeals court panel in San Francisco was expected to rule on whether to lift another judge's temporary block of a similar deployment in Democratic-ruled Portland, Oregon.
Illinois and Oregon are not the first states to file legal challenges against the Trump administration's extraordinary domestic use of the National Guard. Democratic-ruled California filed suit after the Republican president first sent troops to Los Angeles earlier this year to quell demonstrations sparked by a crackdown on undocumented migrants. A district court judge ruled it unlawful but an appeals court panel allowed the deployment to temporarily proceed.
An AFP journalist who visited the Broadview facility on Thursday saw a few National Guard members and ICE personnel milling about on the other side of the fence. About 15 protesters hurled insults, calling the agents "human traffickers" and "Nazis."
"Show your faces, you cowards!" they yelled. "Are your mommies proud of you?"
The deployment in Chicago involves 200 National Guard troops from Texas and 300 from Illinois, the US Army Northern Command said. They have been mobilized for an initial period of 60 days.
Trump has said he could invoke the rarely used Insurrection Act – which allows the president to deploy the military within the United States to suppress rebellion – if courts or local officials continue "holding us up."
At a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Trump repeated his claims that crime is rampant in Chicago and Portland.
"We've launched a historic campaign to take back our nation from the gangs and the street criminals, violent repeat offenders, illegal alien lawbreakers, domestic extremists and savage, bloodthirsty cartels," he said.
Trump has been accused by critics of growing authoritarianism as he tries to fulfill his campaign promise to deport millions of illegal immigrants. Raids by armed and masked federal agents have sparked allegations of rights abuses and illegal detentions. Local officials argue that city and state law enforcement are sufficient to handle protests against ICE agents and street crime.
Pritzker, seen as a potential Democratic candidate in the 2028 presidential election, has called Trump "unhinged."
"He's a wannabe dictator. And there's one thing I really want to say to Donald Trump: if you come for my people, you come through me. So come and get me," the governor said Wednesday.