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The Trump administration is weighing National Guard deployments in Chicago, drawing new attention to how immigration-related arrests have become a central feature of its crackdown in Washington, D.C.
Many of the arrests since President Donald Trump announced the crackdown earlier this month have been immigration-related, including alleged members of Tren de Aragua and MS-13.
The federal surge in the capital city is now inspiring the possibility of targeting Chicago and other blue cities next. In Chicago, ICE is expected to use the Great Lakes Naval Station as a home base for a major immigration enforcement operation in the area soon, according to the New York Times.
“Chicago’s a mess. You have an incompetent mayor. Grossly incompetent,” Trump said on Friday.
ILLINOIS DEMOCRAT LEADERS BLAST TRUMP PUSH TO SEND NATIONAL GUARD TO CHICAGO
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson addresses reporters as President Trump weighs sending troops to Chicago. (Getty Image/ Kamil Krazaczynski)
Like residents in D.C., Chicagoans are already pushing back against Trump’s potential plans.
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“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,” Democratic Mayor Brandon Johnson fired back in a statement. “An unlawful deployment would be unsustainable and would threaten to undermine the historic progress we have made.”
Since President Trump took office in January, the Department of Homeland Security has highlighted a series of major ICE arrests in Chicago as part of its broader enforcement push. Officials say the agency is continuing mass deportation efforts while also urging undocumented immigrants without additional criminal records to voluntarily leave the country.
WHITE HOUSE ACCUSES PRITZKER, ILLINOIS DEMS OF WHINING WHILE CHICAGO CRIME RAGES
DC Metropolitan Police detain a person after an altercation between members of the public in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 14, 2025. (REUTERS/Nathan Howard)
Guatemalan national Francisco Dominguez-Chon was convicted of aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a minor, and Adonias Garrido-Virul, also from Guatemala, was convicted of predatory criminal sexual assault of a minor.
Mexican national Hector Bonaparte-Contreras was convicted of predatory criminal sexual assault of a child under 13 years old. In addition, Israel Cobian-Sandoval, a Mexican national, was convicted of homicide.
“President Trump has been clear: we are going to make our streets and cities safe again. Across the country, DHS law enforcement is arresting and removing the worst of worst including gang members, murderers, pedophiles, and rapists that have terrorized American communities. Under Secretary Noem, ICE and CBP are working overtime to deliver on the American people’s mandate to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens and make America safe again.
TRUMP’S WEEK SHAPED BY CRIME AGENDA, POTENTIAL GUARD DEPLOYMENT TO CHICAGO
President Donald Trump speaks with members of law enforcement and National Guard soldiers, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo)
Some local voices in Chicago are calling for major changes in order to stop crime in some parts of the city.
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“The city is not safe,” restaurateur Sam Sanchez told Fox News Digital in a recent interview.
“For the mayor and the governor to go on TV and use us as statistics, as numbers, I mean, we’re human beings, we’re talking about real time,” he added.
Fox News Digital’s Preston Mizell and Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.
