Politics
Mayor Johnson Hits Back at Trump’s ‘Illegal’ Plans to Deploy National Guard to Chicago
Video: President Donald Trump speaks to reporters about Chicago in the Oval Office on Aug. 22, 2025. (CNN)
Mayor Brandon Johnson hit back at President Donald Trump’s threat to deploy the National Guard into Chicago, calling those plans “illegal” as well as “uncoordinated, uncalled for and unsound.”
Johnson on Friday said he takes Trump’s statement seriously, but said the city has not received any word from federal authorities about the deployment of any additional law enforcement into Chicago.
“The problem with the President’s approach is that it is uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound,” Johnson said in a statement. “Unlawfully deploying the National Guard to Chicago has the potential to inflame tensions between residents and law enforcement when we know that trust between police and residents is foundational to building safer communities.”
After already deploying some 2,000 troops across Washington D.C., Trump on Friday indicated that “Chicago will be our next,” Trump has targeted the nation’s largest cities — run by Democrats, with Black mayors and majority-minority populations — as dangerous and filthy.
He singled out Chicago on Friday, calling it a “mess” and saying residents there are “screaming for us to come,” despite the significant drops in violent crime the city has recorded this year.
The president, who was sitting in the Oval Office and wearing a red hat that said, “Trump Was Right About Everything,” claimed people in Chicago are “wearing red hats just like this one.”
He added, “African American ladies, beautiful ladies, are saying, ‘Please, President Trump, come to Chicago, please.’”
Mayor Brandon Johnson responds to an overnight shooting during a news conference at City Hall in the Loop, July 3, 2025. (Ashlee Rezin/Chicago Sun-Times via AP, File)
Johnson and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker had previously dismissed similar threats from Trump, accusing the president of “spreading misinformation.”
Gov. JB Pritzker in his own statement accused Trump of creating “chaos that distracts from his problems” and said the president’s previous efforts at deploying the National Guard amounted to “authoritarian overreach.”.
“Trump and Republicans are trying to distract from the pain they are causing working families,” Pritzker said, “from tariffs raising the prices of everyday goods to stripping away healthcare and food from millions of Americans.”
“The safety of the people of Illinois is my highest priority,” Pritzker added, “so we will follow the law and stand up for the sovereignty of our state.”
Johnson on Friday noted that Chicago has seen significant drops in violent crime this year. According to Chicago Police Department data, homicides in 2025 are down more than 30% compared to last year. Robberies and shootings are also down more than 30%, year-over-year.
Beyond policing, Johnson has credited community investments and the work of violence interrupters with helping drive those declines. He said any “unlawful” law enforcement deployments would not be sustainable and would threaten “to undermine the historic progress we have.”
“The National Guard is no substitute for dedicated local law enforcement and community violence interrupters who know and serve our communities every day,” Johnson said. “There are many things the federal government could do to help us reduce crime and violence in Chicago, but sending in the military is not one of them.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
