By Tom Ozimek
President Donald Trump has authorized the deployment of 300 members of the Illinois National Guard to protect federal assets amid “violent riots and lawlessness,” a White House spokesperson said.
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson confirmed the deployment in a statement to The Epoch Times.
“Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like [Illinois Gov. JB] Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President [Donald] Trump has authorized 300 national guardsmen to protect federal officers and assets,” she said. “President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities.”
Pritzker accused Washington of attempting to escalate tensions amid ongoing clashes between protesters and federal agents in the Chicago area.
The governor said in an Oct. 4 statement that the Department of War issued him an ultimatum earlier in the day—either he mobilizes the state’s National Guard or the administration will do it directly.
“It is absolutely outrageous and un-American to demand a governor send military troops within our own borders and against our will,” Pritzker said. “They will pull hardworking Americans out of their regular jobs and away from their families all to participate in a manufactured performance—not a serious effort to protect public safety. For [President] Donald Trump, this has never been about safety. This is about control.”
The statement followed violent confrontations in Broadview, near Chicago, where crowds of protesters have demonstrated against federal immigration enforcement operations for weeks.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on Oct. 4 that its officers were “rammed by vehicles and boxed in by 10 cars” during a patrol, prompting agents to fire at an armed driver identified in an earlier Customs and Border Protection intelligence bulletin. DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said no law enforcement officers were seriously injured in the attack.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed the attack and announced that “special operations” were being deployed to stabilize the scene. “If you see a law enforcement officer today, thank them,” she said in a statement.
The confrontation marked the latest escalation in an increasingly tense standoff between federal authorities and some states over “Operation Midway Blitz,” a federal immigration enforcement initiative launched on Sept. 8.
DHS said recently the operation has resulted in more than 800 arrests in Illinois, targeting individuals with criminal records, including sexual offenses and gang ties.
Pritzker has denounced the operation as unconstitutional, calling it “a pretext to send armed military troops into our communities.”
The governor, at a press conference last week, accused federal agents of using tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and flashbangs against protesters exercising their First Amendment right in Broadview.
McLaughlin had earlier urged Pritzker to tone down “rhetoric about ICE” after clashes broke out between protesters and federal agents outside the Broadview ICE processing facility.
“These riots outside the ICE Broadview Processing Center and attacks on ICE officers come after Democrat politicians, including Governor Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson, have villainized and demonized ICE law enforcement,” McLaughlin stated.
The Department of War confirmed last week that it had received a DHS request to deploy troops to Illinois to help protect federal personnel, property, and functions. It said any decisions would be made “in accordance with established processes and announced at the appropriate time.”
In his Oct. 4 statement, Pritzker said that “there is no need for military troops on the ground in the State of Illinois” and that local law enforcement have been working “to ensure public safety around the Broadview ICE facility, and to protect people’s ability to peacefully exercise their constitutional rights.”
“I will not call up our National Guard to further Trump’s acts of aggression against our people,” he added.
The Epoch Times has reached out to the White House for comment on Pritzker’s announcement about the imminent National Guard deployment.
Aldgra Fredly contributed to this report.
