President Donald Trump will soon federalize 300 National Guard troops in Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker said Saturday, a move that comes despite the governor’s opposition.
“This morning, the Trump Administration’s Department of War gave me an ultimatum: call up your troops, or we will,” Pritzker said in a statement. “It is absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand a Governor send military troops within our own borders and against our will.“
Pritzker’s announcement did not say where the troops will be sent. But Trump has long floated sending troops to Chicago as part of his nationwide crime crackdown. “We’re going in,” he told reporters at the White House in early September.
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Trump has repeatedly deployed National Guardsmen to cities across America, from Los Angeles to Washington, despite federal law generally prohibiting the use of the military for domestic law enforcement.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated.
