WASHINGTON — Chicago is becoming the latest testing ground for President Trump's domestic military deployment as hundreds of National Guard troops were expected to arrive in the city.
The president said Wednesday that Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson should be jailed for failing to support federal agents and continued to paint a grim and violent picture in both Chicago and Portland, Oregon, where Trump is trying to send federal troops but is still being blocked by the courts.
“It’s so bad,” Trump said at the White House on Wednesday. “It's so crazy. It's like a movie… where you have these bombed-out cities and these bombed-out people. It's even worse. I don't think they could make a movie that bad.”
This week, Pritzker described Trump's portrayal of Chicago as “deranged” and untrue. Federal agents are making communities “less safe,” the governor said, noting that residents don't want “Donald Trump occupying their communities” and that people of color fear being profiled during an immigration crackdown.
Trump has taken issue with Democrats in Illinois and Oregon who are fighting his efforts and said twice this week that he would use Act of Rebellion 1807 if local leaders and the courts try to stop him. White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller also said this week that the court's decision blocking Trump's trip to Portland amounted to a “legal insurrection” as well as “an insurrection against the laws and Constitution of the United States.”
In a television interview Monday, Miller was asked about his remarks and asked whether the administration would comply with court orders halting the deployment of troops to Illinois and Portland. Miller replied saying the president has “full powers” before falling silent mid-sentence – a moment that the presenter said could have been a technical problem.
“Total power” is a legal term that means someone has unlimited power.
The legality of the troop deployments in Portland and Chicago will come under scrutiny Thursday in two federal courts.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear the Trump administration's appeal of the Portland case. A Trump-appointed judge, Karin Immergut, found that the White House not only broke the law by deploying the Oregon National Guard, but also broke the law further by attempting to circumvent her order. deployment of the California National Guard in its place.
The appellate panel consists of three judges: two Trump appointees and one Clinton appointee.
Meanwhile, in Illinois, U.S. District Judge April Perry on Monday refused to block the emergency deployment of National Guard members, allowing the force buildup to continue. On Thursday she will hear arguments about the legality of the operation.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, one of Trump's main political opponents, has joined the fight against the president's troop deployment efforts.
The Trump administration sent 14 California National Guard members to Illinois to train out-of-state troops, according to court records filed Tuesday. Federal officials also told California they intend to extend Trump's federalization of the state's 300 Guard members until next year.
“Trump is going on a nationwide crusade to sow chaos and division.” Newsom said Wednesday. “His actions – and the actions of his Cabinet – are contrary to our deeply held American values. He needs to stop this illegal farce now.”
By Wednesday evening there was little sign of National Guard troops on the streets of Chicago. But troops from other states, including the Texas National Guard, were waiting on the sidelines at the Army Reserve Center in Illinois as early as Tuesday.
In anticipation of the rollout, Pritzker warned that if the president's efforts go unchecked, it would put the United States on a “path to full-blown authoritarianism.”
The Democratic governor also said the president's calls to jail him were “reckless” and called Trump a “willing dictator.”
“There's one thing I really want to say to Donald Trump: If you come for my people, you will come through me. So come and get me.” Pritzker said this in an interview with MSNBC.
As tensions grew in Chicago, Trump held an event at the White House to talk about how he intends to crack down on antifa, the nebulous left-wing anti-fascist movement he recently labeled a domestic terrorist organization.
At the event, the president said many of the people involved in the movement operate in Chicago and Portland, and he once again attacked local and state leaders in both cities and states.
“You can say about Portland and you can certainly say about Chicago: what they're doing is illegal,” Trump said of the left-wing protests. “They'll have to be very careful.”
Johnson, the mayor of Chicago, criticized Trump for saying he should be jailed for his actions.
“This is not the first time Trump has tried to unjustly arrest a black man,” Johnson wrote on social media. “I'm not going anywhere.”
Pritzker continued to criticize Trump's efforts into the evening, accusing the president of “violating the Constitution and the law.”
“We need to stand together and speak out,” the governor said on social media.
Times staff writer Melody Gutierrez in Sacramento contributed to this report.
