Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) on Monday decried the clashes between soldiers and citizens in the Chicago area after the Trump administration ordered 100 troops to the Prairie State.
“Moments ago, the Illinois National Guard received word that the Department of Homeland Security has sent a memo to the Department of War, seeking the deployment of 100 military troops to Illinois, claiming a need for the protection“ of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) personnel and facilities, Pritzker said during a news conference, using the Trump administration’s preferred name for the Department of Defense.
“What I have been warning of is now being realized; one thing is clear, none of what Trump is doing is making Illinois safer,” he added.
Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell confirmed the Department of Homeland Security request to NewsNation, The Hill’s sister station.
“The Department of War has received a request for assistance to safeguard federal personnel, property, and functions in the state of Illinois. Any decisions will be made in accordance with established processes and announced at the appropriate time,” Parnell said.
However, Pritzker has continued to push back against Trump administration officials’ intent to send federal forces into Illinois, citing multiple reports of agents attacking unarmed citizens and journalists.
“Over the weekend, we received numerous confirmed reports of federal agents from ICE and Customs and Border Patrol abusing their power, intimidating innocent civilians, and waging war on our people,” Pritzker told reporters on Monday.
“All of this has been aimed at causing chaos and mayhem in the hopes of creating a pretext to deploy military troops against Chicago and broad view and other suburbs. Just as the president is doing right now in Oregon,” he added, referring to Trump’s weekend announcement that he was sending National Guard troops to Portland.
Pritzker acknowledged the death of a local citizen killed in Franklin Park two weeks ago and shamed ICE for justifying the shooting.
“A man is dead. A community is shaken up. And we are yet again left with more questions than answers,” the governor said.
He also noted a CBS Chicago reporter had chemical munitions fired at her car where no protesters were present, according to reports.
“Donald Trump and Kristi Noem and Tom Homan said they were targeting the worst of the worst criminals. They lied and they continue to lie. Sixty percent of the individuals that ICE has taken in Illinois this year have no criminal convictions of any kind,” Pritzker said. “ICE is running around the Loop harassing people for not being white. Just a year ago, that was illegal in the United States. Now, ICE is making it commonplace. That’s not making America great.”
Illinois is one of many states where troops have been deployed. California was the first state to see the Trump administration send hundreds of soldiers for law enforcement purposes over the summer, eventually followed by troops being sent to Washington, D.C., to crack down on crime.
The president has confirmed the National Guard would soon be deployed to Memphis, Tenn., and Portland despite resistance from local leadership.