Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) is bucking threats from President Trump to send National Guard troops to his city, saying Chicagoans will “not bend or cower” to the president’s will.
In a statement on Sunday, Johnson said he is in “active communication” with local and state counterparts “as we prepare for any potential unconstitutional military deployments to Chicago.”
“The Governor, the Cook County Board President, and I are in complete alignment: Chicago is not calling for a military occupation of our city,” Johnson said in a statement. “We are currently evaluating all of our legal options to protect the people of Chicago from unconstitutional federal overreach.”
“No matter what happens, the City of Chicago will not waver. We are Chicago. We will not bend or cower, and we will never break,” he added.
Trump on Friday said Chicago would likely be the next target of his efforts to crack down on crime, homelessness and illegal immigration.
“I think Chicago will be … next,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
“And then we’ll help with New York.”
The Washington Post reported on Saturday that the Pentagon for weeks has been planning a military deployment to Chicago.
The planning could involve several options, the Post reported, including sending a few thousand members of the National Guard as soon as September to patrol the city’s streets.
A similar effort was undertaken in Los Angeles, amid a surge in demonstrations against Trump’s immigration enforcement efforts.
Johnson said Chicago has made notable progress in the last year to reduce crime in the city, and those efforts should continue.
“In Chicago, we have effectively reduced all forms of violent crime by doing what works: constitutional policing, violence prevention, and investing in our communities. This past year alone, we have seen a more than 30% reduction in homicides, a 35% reduction in robberies, and an almost 40% reduction in shootings,” Johnson said. “We need to keep building on this work.”
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