Border czar Tom Homan said Sunday that the Trump administration plans to take action in “most sanctuary cities” in the coming week, including Chicago.

“Should we expect action in Chicago this week?” asked CNN “State of the Union” host Jake Tapper, to which Mr. Homan replied, “Absolutely.”

“You can expect action in most sanctuary cities across the country,” Mr. Homan said. “President Trump has prioritized sanctuary cities because sanctuary cities knowingly release illegal-alien public safety threats to the streets every day. That’s where the problem is.”

Asked if Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker were aware of the administration’s plans, Mr. Homan said that “Governor Pritzker has been notified on day one,” citing the Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s ongoing activity in Chicago since Mr. Trump took office in January.

“Again, we’re going to send additional resources to all sanctuary cities, but this isn’t new to him [Mr. Pritzker],” Mr. Homan said. “He knows we’ve been there. He’s failed to work with us.”

His comments come with Mr. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, both Democrats, decrying Mr. Trump’s speculation about sending National Guard troops for a crackdown on illegal immigration and crime in the Windy City.

Mr. Pritzker erupted Saturday after the president posted a reference to the movie “Apocalypse Now” on Truth Social with the caption, “I love the smell of deportations in the morning” and “Chicago’s about to find out why it’s called the Department of War.”

“The President of the United States is threatening to go to war with an American city,” Mr. Pritzker responded. “This is not a joke. This is not normal. Donald Trump isn’t a strongman, he’s a scared man. Illinois won’t be intimidated by a wannabe dictator.”

Mr. Homan accused the Democratic governor of taking the president’s comments out of context, saying the war is not against the city itself, but against criminal threats.

“We’re going to war with the criminal cartels,” he said. “We’re going to war with illegal aliens, public safety threats that rape children, that rape citizens, that committed armed robbery, that distribute narcotics and kill Americans. We’re at war with the criminal cartels, and Gov. Pritzker protects criminal illegal aliens and public safety threats every day in that state, along with Mayor Johnson.”

Mr. Homan declined to provide details on how many National Guard troops would be assigned to Chicago, calling it “law-enforcement sensitive information.”

• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.