Chicago's mayor defies Trump's blueprint for a hardline approach to immigrant policies within the city.
In a bold move against the Trump administration, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has pushed back against plans to surge federal officers into the city. The Chicago operation, set to focus exclusively on immigration, is not expected to involve the National Guard or military, according to reports.
The White House has insisted that the potential flood of federal agents is about "cracking down on crime." However, Johnson has accused Trump of seeking a federal presence in blue cities as retribution against his political rivals. He has also accused the President of behaving outside the bounds of the Constitution.
Johnson's order builds on the city's longtime stance against federal involvement in immigration enforcement. Chicago and Illinois have some of the country's strongest rules against cooperating with federal immigration enforcement efforts. In response, an executive order signed by Mayor Johnson bars the Chicago Police Department from helping federal authorities with civil immigration enforcement or related patrols, traffic stops, and checkpoints during the surge.
The Mayor has also directed all city departments to guard the constitutional rights of Chicago residents amidst the possibility of imminent militarized immigration or National Guard deployment by the federal government. Chicago police have been blocked from wearing face coverings to hide their identities, a practice adopted by most federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers since the Trump administration took charge this year.
President Donald Trump, in a comment on his Truth Social site, stated that Chicago and Illinois need help in preventing crime. He suggested that he might send help if they don't straighten things out fast. Abigail Jackson, White House spokeswoman, stated that if Democrats focused on fixing crime in their own cities, their communities would be much safer.
Johnson described Trump as the biggest threat to democracy in the country. He has made it clear that he does not take orders from the federal government and has excluded the Chicago Police Department from cooperating with federal immigration control efforts, rejecting militarized immigration enforcement and refusing police collaboration in patrols, traffic stops, and checkpoint controls related to immigration.
The federal surge into Chicago could start as early as Sept. 5 and last about 30 days, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity. This immigration crackdown is part of a larger effort to expand the federal law enforcement presence in major Democratic-run cities, as it did this summer in Los Angeles.
As the situation unfolds, Mayor Johnson and the city of Chicago continue to stand firm against federal intervention, prioritizing the constitutional rights and safety of its residents.
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