Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at the office of The Center for American Progress event on March 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
TRUMP ESCALATES FIGHT WITH PRITZKER AS BLOODY CHICAGO WEEKEND SPARKS TROOP WARNING
After Pritzker refused to deploy his own troops, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott authorized Trump to send 400 Texas National Guard members to Illinois and Oregon.
Abbott said he deployed Texas troops to "ensure safety for federal officials" in the blue states where protesters have rejected the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) deportation efforts.
"You can either fully enforce protection for federal employees or get out of the way and let Texas Guard do it," Abbott said.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker delivers remarks in Chicago alongside Mayor Brandon Johnson and other officials after reports the White House was preparing to deploy National Guard troops to the city. (Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images)
Anti-ICE protesters have gathered for weeks at the Broadview ICE facility, demanding transparency about the conditions inside the holding center and rejecting the Trump administration's deportation rollout in Chicago.
"I will not call up our National Guard to further Trump’s acts of aggression against our people," Pritzker said. "In Illinois, we will do everything within our power to look out for our neighbors, uphold the Constitution and defend the rule of law."
Illinois Democrats, including Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, have railed against Trump since he told his Cabinet in August that he's "willing to go to Chicago, which is in big trouble."
Pritzker and his fellow Democrats responded by labeling Trump a "wannabe dictator" as the White House for months considered deploying the U.S. National Guard to Chicago.
Federal law enforcement arrives near an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Broadview, Ill., on Oct. 3, 2025. (Erin Hooley/AP)
The move is part of the Trump administration's attempt to crack down on crime nationwide and protect federal officers who are leading deportation efforts in major U.S. cities.
A federal judge blocked Trump’s efforts to deploy the U.S. National Guard troops to Oregon on Sunday.
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Trump deployed the U.S. National Guard to Washington, D.C., in early August to thwart crime in the nation's capital. Prior to that deployment, Trump deployed the national guardsmen to Los Angeles during anti-ICE protests that devolved into riots in June.
Deirdre Heavey is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/white-house-mocks-slob-pritzker-after-he-rejects-trumps-national-guard-plan