The mayor of Chicago criticized the “out-of-control” Trump administration’s strategy to deploy federal officers to the nation’s third-largest city, a move potentially occurring within days.
An executive order signed by Mayor Brandon Johnson prohibits the Chicago Police Department from assisting federal authorities with civil immigration enforcement or related patrols, traffic stops, and checkpoints during this surge.
The mayor instructed all city departments to protect the constitutional rights of Chicago residents “amidst the possibility of imminent militarized immigration or National Guard deployment by the federal government.”
When questioned at a news conference regarding federal agents supposedly “taking orders,” Johnson remarked: “Yeah, and I don’t take orders from the federal government.”
Johnson also prohibited Chicago police from using face coverings to conceal their identities, a practice many federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers have adopted since the Trump administration commenced this year.
The federal deployment to Chicago may begin as early as Sept. 5 and could extend for approximately 30 days, according to two U.S. officials speaking confidentially about plans not yet publicly disclosed.
The officials described the immigration crackdown as part of a larger effort to expand the federal law enforcement presence in major Democratic-run cities, as it did this summer in Los Angeles.
On Saturday, President Donald Trump commented about Chicago crime and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on his Truth Social site: “Six people were killed, and 24 people were shot, in Chicago last weekend, and JB Pritzker, the weak and pathetic Governor of Illinois, just said that he doesn’t need help in preventing CRIME. He is CRAZY!!! He better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming! MAGA. President DJT”
Unlike the recent federal takeover of policing in Washington, D.C., the Chicago operation is not expected to rely on the National Guard or military and is focused exclusively on immigration instead of being cast as part of a broad campaign against crime, the officials said.
Chicago is home to a large immigrant population, and both the city and the state of Illinois have some of the country’s strongest rules against cooperating with federal immigration enforcement efforts. That has often put the city and state at odds with President Donald Trump ‘s mass deportation agenda.
Johnson’s order builds on the city’s longtime stance, saying neither Chicago nor Illinois officials have sought or been consulted on the federal presence and demanding Trump stand down on those plans.
Johnson had harsh words for Trump during his news conference, accusing the president of “behaving outside the bounds of the Constitution” and seeking a federal presence in blue cities as retribution against his political rivals.
“He is reckless and out of control,” Johnson said. “He’s the biggest threat to our democracy that we’ve experienced in the history of our country.”
In response, the White House insisted the potential flood of federal agents was about “cracking down on crime.”
“If these Democrats focused on fixing crime in their own cities instead of doing publicity stunts to criticize the President, their communities would be much safer,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in an email Saturday.
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