Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson criticized President Donald Trump over the weekend, warning that any attempt to deploy the National Guard to the city as part of a federal crime crackdown could provoke residents to “rise up.”
Trump suggested that Chicago might be the next city to receive enhanced federal law enforcement support, a move also rejected by Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, who called it a “manufactured crisis.”
“The city of Chicago does not need a military-occupied state. That’s not who we are,” Johnson said. He praised leaders in Los Angeles for resisting what he described as authoritarian measures, adding, “They don’t have police power. There’s nothing they can do.”
Johnson said the city would remain firm, pursue legal action if necessary, and rely on the community to stand alongside city leadership to protect residents. He emphasized that Chicago, a city built on the values of working people, would not “surrender our humanity” to federal intervention.
