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Pritzker Claims Military Forces Being Deployed To Illinois

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JB Pritzker
Photo Credit: "J. B. Pritzker" by Gage Skidmore is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/?ref=openverse.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker declared Monday that the state has been informed of the Trump administration’s plan to deploy 100 military personnel to safeguard Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

The move comes as ICE agents have flooded the city, flaring tensions outside of a local suburban facility.

Pritzker revealed that the Illinois National Guard found out that a Department of Homeland Security memo requested that the Pentagon send military forces to defend ICE facilities and staff in Illinois.

According to his office, the memo did not define if those troops would consist of Illinois National Guard, units from other states, or even active-duty soldiers.

The governor said there is still uncertainty over which forces have been requested and when they might be deployed.

“What I have been warning of has now been realized,” Pritzker said, recalling his previous prediction that ICE would attempt to inflame Chicago residents to warrant military involvement.

He went on to accuse the administration of targeting communities rather than criminals.

“This is an attack on neighborhoods, on lawful residents, on U.S. citizens. That’s not preventing crime, as Donald Trump claims, that’s threatening public safety,” Pritzker remarked.

“But as I’ve said many times, for Donald Trump and the MAGAs in Congress, this is not about fighting crime or about public safety.”

He claimed the federal government’s actions were about causing fear, intimidation, and division amongst the population.

“It was about creating a pretext to send armed military troops into our communities,” the Democrat lawmaker added. “This is about consolidating power in Donald Trump’s hands.”

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President Trump has repeatedly floated the possibility of deploying the military into Chicago and across Illinois, citing violent crime statistics even as homicide and shooting numbers.

Trump has insisted federal forces are needed to bring order, portraying ICE personnel as under siege from unruly demonstrations.

Attorney General Pam Bondi announced Monday on social media that the Department of Justice “is deploying agents to protect ICE facilities, arrest violent agitators on the spot, and bring the strongest federal charges possible.”

According to the Illinois governor, ICE has taken roughly 1,500 people into custody in the Chicago area, and that nearly 60 percent of those detained have no criminal record.

On Sunday, heavily armed federal agents in tactical gear walked through tourist corridors in Chicago.

The show of force followed weeks of intensifying confrontations at an ICE building in Broadview, where federal officers clashed with demonstrators.

Authorities were reported using tear gas, pepper bullets, and other crowd-control measures, detaining several protesters in back-to-back days of unrest.

Federal prosecutors in Chicago disclosed that five individuals were arrested over the weekend and now face charges including assaulting and resisting federal officers during the Broadview enforcement actions.

At least two of those arrested were allegedly armed with concealed, loaded firearms.

According to the local ATF office, the pair also injured an agent while assaulting officers at the site.

Pritzker condemned the treatment of protesters, saying, “In Broadview, people non-violently holding signs and chanting against brutality, expressing their First Amendment rights, have been regularly attacked with chemical agents like tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and flashbangs. Agents reportedly unholstered their guns and pointed them at protesters.”

He also took aim at the presence of armed patrols in Chicago’s commercial districts.

“On a beautiful weekend, when families were out enjoying their day in Chicago, armed border patrol agents were downtown, marching up and down Michigan Avenue, harassing and intimidating residents and tourists,” he said.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson voiced outrage over the incident, declaring that families simply enjoying a sunny afternoon encountered “heavily armed federal agents” bent on striking “fear into our communities.”

“These are heartbreaking scenes that have nothing to do with making our city safer,” Johnson stated.

Pritzker insisted that Illinois is ready to take legal action should the Trump administration proceed with troop deployment.

“This is not about fighting crime or about public safety. This is about sowing fear and intimidation and division among Americans,” he said.

“With one voice we are telling this unwarranted and unconstitutional occupation by ICE and potentially military troops to get out of Chicago. You are not helping us.”

Trump recently declared he would send troops into Portland, Oregon, to defend federal buildings.

State leaders filed suit against the Trump administration that contends Trump lacks authority to federalize National Guard units.

Over the weekend, Trump promised to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland,” describing ICE offices as besieged.

Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon accused Trump of seeking to provoke unrest.

“Trump is launching an authoritarian takeover of Portland hoping to provoke conflict in my hometown,” he posted on X.

He urged Oregonians to avoid taking the bait and said he would use all available power to shield residents.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek urged her constituents to stay calm, saying, “Let’s not take the bait.”

Protests near the Portland ICE building have led to dozens of arrests since June.

Federal prosecutors say 26 people face charges related to those demonstrations.

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