US President Donald Trump has authorized the deployment of 300 National Guard troops to Chicago, claiming the deployment is needed to combat out-of-control crime in the city.
Immigration authorities clashed with protesters in the Democratic-run city, shooting an armed woman. Protesters, including the woman, rammed into a law enforcement vehicle. A few hours after this incident, Trump took steps to deploy troops.
The announcement comes as a federal judge in Portland, Oregon, temporarily halted the Trump administration’s move to deploy 200 troops. Chicago is also likely to face legal challenges over the deployment of troops.
Chicago is the latest city to take the controversial step of deploying troops, following similar deployments in Washington, Los Angeles, Memphis and Portland.
These deployments have raised legal and constitutional questions, as National Guard troops are typically deployed by state governors and centuries-old laws limit the use of military force in domestic affairs.
State and local leaders have been criticizing Trump’s deployment plan for weeks, calling it an abuse of power. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker said Trump was trying to create a crisis.
Protests against immigration enforcement have increased in Chicago in recent days, many of which have taken place outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building.
Trump has been threatening to send the military to Chicago for about a month, citing the city’s crime and shootings.
“These cities are very unsafe, and we will fix them one by one,” he said, referring to Democrat-controlled cities.
Chicago’s violent crime rate has dropped significantly over the past two years. According to data from the Council on Criminal Justice, the homicide rate from January to June was down by one-third compared to the same period last year.
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