Officials and residents in Chicago are on edge as the city faces the imminent possibility of a United States National Guard deployment, part of President Donald Trump’s escalating campaign to address crime and immigration in Democratic-led cities. The potential arrival of troops—anticipated as early as September 6, 2025, according to CNN—has ignited a fierce standoff between city and state leaders and the White House, with accusations of political theater, legal overreach, and threats to civil liberties flying from all sides.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat, has emerged as one of the most vocal opponents of the move. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on September 3, 2025, Pritzker declared, “We will not stand idly by if he decides to send the National Guard to intimidate Chicagoans. Action will be met with a response.” Pritzker’s stance is rooted in a broader critique of what he calls Trump’s “dangerous power grab.” He maintains that there is no crime emergency in Chicago warranting such a drastic federal intervention, insisting instead that the president is “attempting to manufacture a crisis, politicize Americans who serve in uniform, and continue abusing his power to distract from the pain he is causing working families.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, also a Democrat, has taken concrete steps to resist any federal incursion. On August 30, 2025, Johnson signed an executive order instructing Chicago police not to collaborate with National Guard troops or federal agents. The order further urges federal agents to wear body cameras and reveal their faces, rather than donning masks as seen in previous “military-style” immigration raids. “We will not have our police officers, who are working hard every single day to drive down crime, deputize to do traffic stops and checkpoints for the president,” Johnson stated at a recent press conference.
The city’s leadership has also pointed to data showing significant improvements in public safety. As of September 1, 2025, Johnson reported a 21 percent decrease in overall crime compared to the previous year. Homicides are down by 33 percent, aggravated assaults by 16 percent, gun assaults by 27 percent, robberies by 35 percent, carjackings by 51 percent, and domestic violence by 10 percent, according to data from the Council on Criminal Justice. “Violent crime has declined in the last year, including homicides and robberies dipping by more than 30%, and shootings dropping by nearly 40%,” Johnson cited, though he acknowledged crime remains higher than in 2021.
Despite these statistics, President Trump has doubled down on his justification for deploying the National Guard, not only in Chicago but in other Democratic strongholds as well. “Frankly, they were born to be criminals,” Trump said on September 3, 2025, referring to those he sees as responsible for violence in major cities. “And they’re tough and mean, and they’ll cut your throat, and they won’t even think about it the next day. They won’t even remember that they did it. And we’re not going to have those people.” He has also boasted about the effects of federal intervention in Washington, DC, claiming, “We have no crime. You’re not going to be shot.”
Support for Trump’s moves has come from Republican lawmakers, particularly in Washington, DC, where the president recently asserted federal control over the Metropolitan Police Department and deployed 800 National Guard troops to address crime and homelessness. The force is expected to remain until November 2025. Representative Harriet Hageman praised the president’s “unyielding leadership and strength, coupled with proper congressional oversight,” saying it “ensures that Washington, DC, will reclaim its rightful place.” Some lawmakers are even proposing a “Make Our Streets Safe Again Act” to further bolster these efforts.
Yet the backlash has been swift and, in some cases, successful. In Los Angeles, Trump sent nearly 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 US Marines in June 2025 to quell protests against ICE raids, a move California Governor Gavin Newsom called “political theatre.” On September 2, 2025, US District Judge Charles Breyer ruled the deployment illegal and an overstep of presidential authority, writing, “There were indeed protests in Los Angeles, and some individuals engaged in violence. Yet there was no rebellion, nor was civilian law enforcement unable to respond to the protests and enforce the law.” The court found that the Trump administration had violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which restricts the use of the military for civilian law enforcement, and that the troops had engaged in prohibited activities such as making arrests and conducting searches.
Legal experts and critics warn that similar deployments elsewhere risk undermining democracy and community trust. “This is an active military takeover of the capital,” read an open letter from DC protesters to lawmakers. “It is a textbook indicator of backsliding democracy and intensifying authoritarianism… This might come off as alarmist, but in the last 100 years of history, the pattern is clear and we are witnessing it in real time.”
In Chicago, officials are particularly concerned about the impact on community-police relations. Mayor Johnson has argued that “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.” The mayor has also insisted that “when we fight back against tyranny, the people united will always prevail.”
Governor Pritzker, for his part, has repeatedly emphasized the sovereignty of Illinois and the rule of law. “The safety of the people of Illinois is always my top priority,” he stated on August 30, 2025. “There is no emergency that warrants the President of the United States federalizing the Illinois National Guard, deploying the National Guard from other states, or sending active duty military within our own borders. We will continue to follow the law, stand up for the sovereignty of our state, and protect the people of Illinois.” On September 1, 2025, he went further, calling the potential deployment “unconstitutional” and “un-American,” and accusing Trump of using the military “to occupy a US city, punish its dissidents and score political points.”
Trump, undeterred, has fired back on social media, calling Pritzker “incompetent” and Johnson “no better.” He cited a recent weekend in Chicago with “6 DEAD, 27 HURT IN CRIME SPREES ALLOVER THE CITY,” and insisted, “Panic stricken Governor Pritzker says that crime is under control, when in fact it is just the opposite. He is an incompetent Governor who should call me for HELP. Mayor Johnson is no better. Make Chicago Great Again!”
The broader context is a national debate over the limits of presidential power, the role of the military in domestic affairs, and the best path forward for cities grappling with public safety challenges. While crime remains a deeply felt issue in many communities, the data from Chicago and other cities like Baltimore—which reported its lowest yearly homicide rate in over 50 years as of September 1, 2025—suggests that local efforts are bearing fruit, even as federal intervention looms.
As Chicago braces for what could be a pivotal moment in the ongoing struggle between local autonomy and federal authority, the stakes could hardly be higher—for the city, for Illinois, and for the nation’s understanding of democracy and the rule of law.
