WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump does not have the authority to deploy troops — National Guard — to Chicago, Democratic House of Representatives Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said on Sunday as the Pentagon carried out initial planning for a possible deployment.
Trump, a Republican, has said he would probably expand his crime crackdown to Chicago, intervening in another city governed by Democrats. And on Sunday he suggested the possibility of deploying troops to Democratic-run Baltimore in Maryland.
US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said there had been initial planning at the Pentagon about what a deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago would look like.
One official said the plans were part of the military’s efforts to anticipate any requests by Trump and noted senior Pentagon officials have not yet been briefed on them. It is not uncommon for the Pentagon to plan for potential deployments before formal orders are given.
Jeffries said any move to deploy troops to Chicago was an attempt by Trump to manufacture a crisis.
Crime, including murders, has declined in Chicago in the last year.
“There’s no basis, no authority for Donald Trump to potentially try to drop federal troops into the city of
Chicago,” Jeffries told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
Jeffries cited comments made by JB Pritzker, the Democratic governor of Illinois, which includes Chicago, who said there was no emergency warranting the deployment of the National Guard or other military.
BALTIMORE! I AM READY
Leveling criticism at Democratic Governor Wes Moore over crime levels in Baltimore, Trump said he was prepared to deploy troops there, too.
In July, the Baltimore police department said there had been a double-digit reduction in gun violence compared to the previous year. The city has had 84 homicides so far this year — the fewest in over 50 years, according to the mayor.
“If Wes Moore needs help… I will send in the “troops,” which is being done in nearby DC, and quickly clean up the Crime,” Trump said on Truth Social on Sunday.
Read more: Trump federalises Washington DC police, deploys National Guard
Some Republican governors have sent hundreds of National Guard troops to Washington, DC, at Trump’s request. The president has depicted the capital as being in the grip of a crime wave, although official data shows crime is down in the city.
On Sunday, Trump asserted without evidence that there was now no crime in the city and credited it to his deployment of troops and hundreds of federal law enforcement personnel.
Earlier, Trump said on Friday that Chicago and New York — major Democrat-led cities — were set to receive similar treatment.
“We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “I think Chicago will be our next and then we’ll help with New York.”
CHICAGO AND BALTIMORE ARE DIFFERENT
Trump has much less power over Chicago and Baltimore than he does over the District of Columbia, where as president he holds more sway.
Title 10 of the US Code, a federal law that outlines the role of the US Armed Forces, includes a provision allowing the president to deploy National Guard units to repel an invasion, to suppress a rebellion or to allow the president to execute the law.
Trump cited this provision, known as Section 12406, when he sent National Guard units to California earlier this year to counter protests, over the objections of Governor Gavin Newsom.
In the case of Chicago, which is a so-called sanctuary city, Trump may argue local laws that bar city officials from cooperating with federal immigration agents prevent the president from executing the law, justifying the military presence.
Read more: Stephen Miller: ‘Trump’s brain’ behind migration crackdown
Trump is almost certain to face legal challenges if he uses Section 12406 to send National Guard troops from Republican-led states into Democratic strongholds.
UNDER ATTACK BY TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
Meanwhile, Jefferies isn’t alone in his criticism, as Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, both Democrats, strongly rejected the idea.
“Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are trying to paint their party as one of ‘law and order,’” Pritzker posted on social media platform X.
“That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Pritzker said in remarks reported by WBEZ Chicago that “public safety is under attack by the Trump administration.”
Johnson said the city had received no formal communication from Trump’s administration about military deployments, calling such action “uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound.”
Chicago recorded 573 homicides in 2024, according to the city’s police, eight percent lower than the year before.