Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has accused President Trump of orchestrating a power grab following the president’s repeated threats to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago. While Trump frames the potential deployment as a necessary measure to combat crime, Pritzker contends the true motive is to establish a precedent for military intervention in U.S. cities ahead of the 2026 congressional elections.
Although the president currently appears to lack the legal authority to deploy troops without the governor’s consent, the Department of Homeland Security initiated a separate action this week. The agency announced “Operation Midway Blitz,” a targeted operation to detain undocumented immigrants in the city.
In an interview with NPR on Tuesday, Pritzker elaborated on his opposition to the administration’s policies. He condemned a recent Supreme Court decision that overturned a lower court’s finding of racial profiling by immigration agents. Pritzker specifically criticized Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s argument that it was reasonable to question individuals at construction sites or those who spoke English poorly.
“People are being grabbed,” Pritzker said. “You shouldn’t have to walk around with papers the way that they did in the early days of Nazi Germany to prove that you belong… And that is essentially the kind of country that we’re becoming.”
The governor also articulated a starkly different immigration policy from the administration’s, arguing that undocumented individuals “who’ve been here 10 and 20 and 30 years, who’ve raised families here, who are holding down jobs and paying taxes, who are following the law” should be allowed to stay.
Pritzker reiterated his belief that crime is not the administration’s genuine concern, but rather a pretext to “normalize” the use of military forces in civilian affairs to influence future elections. The administration has cited recent violent crime in Chicago as justification for its focus on the city. While overall crime rates have fallen sharply, violence remains a prominent local issue.
When questioned about his status as a billionaire, Pritzker sought to distinguish himself from those in the Trump administration. “I believe it’s about your values and not about how much money you have,” he stated, pointing to his record on raising the minimum wage and protecting labor rights in Illinois.
Acknowledging government inefficiencies, the governor—often mentioned as a potential 2028 presidential candidate—suggested that the executive experience gained in state leadership is valuable for running the country.
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