WBEZ and The Chicago Sun Times sent out a survey to our members asking for their thoughts and questions about President Donald Trump’s threats to send the National Guard to Chicago — despite a significant drop in crime.
“Now, we’re going to do it anyway. We have the right to do it,” Trump said Tuesday. The president’s comments have been met with stiff opposition from Gov. JB Pritzker, Mayor Brandon Johnson and other Democratic lawmakers. On Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance said there are no “immediate plans” to send National Guard troops here.
We asked you what questions you have about the possible deployment to Chicago. Here are five that came up the most:
How is it legal for the National Guard to just march into our city?
In justifying such deployments, the Trump administration has been citing the Insurrection Act, which was intended to deal with internal rebellion.
Many legal experts say this would be a nuclear option and that allowing federal troop deployment should only be implemented in an emergency.
Trump previously deployed troops to Los Angeles against Gov. Gavin Newsom’s wishes by putting the California National Guard under federal jurisdiction. Newsom and the state of California sued, claiming federalizing the National Guard violated the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, which generally prohibits using the military as law enforcement.
U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer in California recently accused President Donald Trump of a “serious” violation of the law, though Breyer made it clear that his 52-page order applies only to Trump’s use of the National Guard in California.
Trump’s assertion of a “constitutional exception,” which claims “the president has inherent constitutional authority to protect federal property, federal personnel and federal functions,” was also rejected by Breyer.
Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling last week said National Guard members cannot arrest people in Chicago unless they are partnering with federal or local law enforcement.
Another unlikely possibility would involve Trump deploying to Chicago the D.C. National Guard, which he commands. This was done when President John F. Kennedy federalized the Alabama National Guard in 1963 to integrate the University of Alabama.
Can the Trump administration send federal immigration agents to the Naval Station Great Lakes for immigration operations?
Yes, though White House officials said plans to expand immigration enforcement operations in Chicago and other major cities are distinct from Trump’s threats to send the National Guard to combat violent crime.
When it comes to immigration enforcement, White House officials said the current immigration push is firmly in the president’s executive authority.
Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, last week confirmed a ramped-up post-Labor Day deportation campaign was in the works for Chicago with a “large contingent” of agents.
Last week the Sun-Times first reported that the Defense Department has secured Naval Station Great Lakes, about 35 minutes north of Chicago, for an immigration blitz in Chicago. And immigration agents are reportedly training there.
Base leaders were told the facility would be providing “support” in the form of office space for a command center for the operation that will last until Sept. 30.
If Trump does send the National Guard to Chicago, where will guard personnel be posted?
That’s unclear. In Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., where the National Guard has been formally deployed, guard personnel have been stationed around federal buildings or on federal grounds.
Legal experts say even if Trump has the authority to federalize the Illinois National Guard, he doesn’t have the authority to send them into the streets to do ordinary law enforcement.
What can local leaders do to stop a National Guard deployment here?
Not much.
White House officials have said the operation in Chicago would mirror Los Angeles more than D.C. In L.A. thousands of National Guard troops and hundreds of active-duty Marines were activated to quell protests against immigration operations.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has said the city still doesn’t know exactly what the Trump administration is planning.
On Saturday, Johnson signed an executive order barring the Chicago Police Department from helping federal authorities with civil immigration enforcement or any related patrols, traffic stops and checkpoints.
The initiative attempts to have federal law enforcement personnel adhere to municipal rules, such as preventing them from hiding their identities with masks, having body cameras turned on during interactions with the public and displaying identifying information such as badges and uniforms.
In a statement, Johnson said the order aligns with the “desires of the vast majority of Chicagoans, who continue to reject a military occupation of the city.”
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul claims that Trump sending National Guard members to Chicago would violate the Posse Comitatus Act.
“The Posse Comitatus Act limits the federal government’s ability to use the military for domestic law enforcement. None of the prerequisites for National Guard deployment exists here,” he told reporters last week.
Can I take pictures or film the National Guard?
Yes, you can record law enforcement in a public space, as the First Amendment guarantees the right to free speech.
According to Illinois Legal Aid, people recording law enforcement should keep a reasonable distance and follow orders from officers, for example, stepping back or creating distance if asked. It is important not to directly interfere or interact with law enforcement activity.
During a news conference in Pilsen this week Gov. Pritzker said his office wants to ensure that Chicago police officers and other local cops “are aware of what they’re doing, so they can make sure they’re not standing anywhere near those actions or assisting in those actions, but also being ready for protests that might occur.”
The governor also called on residents to record ICE activities “to keep them honest in doing the right thing.”