President Donald Trump said he is looking to send in the National Guard to Chicago or New York, seeking to extend the deployment of guardsmen elsewhere after amassing troops in Washington.
Trump told reporters Friday he’s considering deploying guardsmen to Chicago after ordering troops into the nation’s capital and to Los Angeles earlier this year — a move the Trump administration is now being forced to defend in court.
“We’re going to make our cities very, very safe. Chicago is a mess,” Trump said. “We’ll straighten that one out probably next. That will be our next one after this, and it won’t even be tough.”
Trump later mentioned New York along with Chicago as cities he’d like the National Guard to “help.”
The president praised the hundreds of guardsmen currently deployed in Washington and noted he’s willing to “bring in the regular military” to help support his campaign to reduce crime in the city.
“I really am honored that the National Guard has done such an incredible job working with the police, and we haven’t had to bring in the regular military, which we’re willing to do,” he said. “After we do this, we’ll go to another location, and we’ll make it safe also.”
Washington’s status as a federal territory gives Trump broader authority to deploy the National Guard through the nation’s capital, along with his attempt to take over the city’s police force. National Guard units outside of D.C. are generally under the command of states’ governors, although Trump federalized the California guard to send troops to Los Angeles earlier this year.
But federal law prohibits the use of military personnel for civilian law enforcement except when authorized by the Constitution or another federal law.
Trump’s order to send hundreds of troops to Los Angeles is currently the subject of a legal challenge arguing Trump wrongfully federalized and deployed California guardsmen to quell protests.
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