US National Guard troops arrive in Illinois as Trump escalates repression | Donald Trump news

National Guard troops from Texas have arrived in the US state of Illinois, before a planned deployment to Chicago is strongly opposed by local officials.

The arrival of the troops on Tuesday is another escalation by the US administration of Donald Trump campaign In the third-largest city in the country, it comes despite active legal challenges from Chicago and the state of Illinois making their way through the courts.

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The Guard’s exact mission was not immediately clear, though the Trump administration has an aggressive immigration enforcement operation in Chicago, and protesters have often gathered at an immigration building outside the city in Proview, Illinois.

The president repeatedly described Chicago in hostile terms, calling it a “hellhole” for crime, even though police statistics show significant declines in most crimes, including homicides.

“If you look at Chicago, Chicago is a great city with a lot of crime, and if the governor can’t do the job, we’ll do the job,” Trump said Tuesday of his decision to send the National Guard to the city against the wishes of the state’s leadership. “It’s all very simple.”

There were probably “50 homicides in Chicago over the course of 5, 6, 7 months,” although according to government data, Chicago saw a 33 percent decrease in homicides In the first six months of 2025, a 38 percent reduction in shooting.

Trump also ordered guard forces to Portland, Oregon, after previous deployments to Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. In each case, he did so despite strong opposition from Democratic mayors and governors, who say Trump’s claims of chaos and violence do not reflect reality.

A federal judge said in September that the Republican-led administration “intentionally” broke federal law by stationing patrol forces in Los Angeles over protests over immigration raids.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said the president’s strategy was “unconstitutional, it’s illegal and it’s dangerous.”

Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration on Monday, seeking to block orders to Federalise 300 Illinois Guard Troom and the sending of Texas Guard troops to Chicago. During a hearing, US Justice Department lawyers told a federal judge that Texas Guard troops were already in transit into Illinois.

The judge, April Perry, allowed the publication to go ahead for the time being, but ordered the US government to file a response by Wednesday.

Separately, a federal judge in Oregon on Sunday temporarily blocked the department from sending any troops to Police Portland, the state’s largest city.

The Trump administration has portrayed cities as mired in war and lawless amid its escalation in immigration enforcement.

“These Democrats are, like, insurrection, okay?” The president said Tuesday. “It’s very bad for our country. Their policy is very bad for our country.”

Officials in Illinois and Oregon, however, say military intervention is not required and that federal involvement is exacerbating the situation.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a Democrat, accused Trump of intentionally trying to substantiate violence, which the president could then use to justify more militarization.

“Donald Trump is using our service members as political props and pawns in his illegal effort to corral our nation’s cities,” Pritzker said Monday.

“There is no insurrection in Portland. There is no threat to national security,” said Oregon Democratic Gov. Tina Kotick.

What is the Insurrection Act, and can Trump invoke it?

When speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump explained He is considering invoking the Insurrection Act to clear the way for him to send soldiers into American cities.

“We have an act of insurrection for a reason. If I had to enact it, I would do it,” Trump said Monday.

the Federal law dates back to 1807 It gives the US President the authority to deploy Army or federal National Guard forces anywhere in the United States to restore order during the rebellion.

Constitutional lawyer Bruce Finn told Al Jazeera that presidential powers under the law only apply in cases of major insurrection, the equivalent of the American Civil War, where normal law enforcement and the courts cannot operate. However, Finn added that it was unclear whether he could challenge the president’s declaration of insurrection in court.

“Congress, they can remove Trump and remove him for abusing the law in Portland,” Finn said, adding that military law requires personnel to disobey clearly illegal orders.

He said Trump’s use of the verb in Portland would be “clearly illegal” even if it could not be challenged in court.

The Insurrection Act was invoked in response to 30 incidents, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.

The last time it was invoked was in 1992, in response to the Los Angeles riots by Republican President George H. W. Bush.