CHICAGO (WLS) – Former presidentโค Donald Trump has publicly discussed deploying the National Guard to Chicago, citing what he described as a “mess” and claims of residents “screaming for us to come.” The discussion follows a report in The Washington Post detailing potential plans for federal intervention in the city.
Trump,speaking from โthe Oval office while wearing a red hat emblazoned with “Trump Was Right About Everything,” stated,”We’ll straighten that one out problably next. That will be our next โone after this.” He further โclaimedโ that people โinโ Chicagoโฃ are “wearing red hats just like this one,” and that “african american ladies, beautiful ladies, are saying, ‘Please, President Trump, โcome toโ Chicago,โ please.'”
These statementsโฃ prompted โขa response from Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who released a statement Friday calling Trump’s approach “uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound.” Other city leaders have characterized Trump’s actions as a political โstunt, questioning hisโ motivesโ regarding crime reduction.
Illinois Governor J.B. โPritzker and Attorney Generalโข Kwame Raoul also criticized the potential deployment, calling it a dangerous and unconstitutional overreach.
ABC7’s Chiefโ Legal Analyst Gil Soffer explained that whileโข activating the โNational Guard would likely face โlegal challenges, the practice of federalizingโค National guard troops is becoming increasingly common. Soffer noted recentโ deployments in Los Angeles and theโข potential โคfor further action in other cities.
Though, data analyzed by the ABC7 data team reveals a different picture of crimeโค trends in Chicago. year-to-date totals show overall crime is down 13% compared to the previous year, with violent crime down 23% and property crimes down 11%.
Mayor johnson โฃstated Friday that the city’s legal team is preparing forโฃ potential legal action. ABC7 has reached out to โฃMayor โJohnson’s office for further comment following theโ statementsโข from Governor pritzker and โAttorney General Raoul regarding The Washington Post โreport.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
SEE ALSO | Judge blocks Trump from cutting โfunding from 34 cities and counties over ‘sanctuary’ policies
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