While he gave the “yes,” he hasn’t given the specifics.
“I didn’t way when, but we’re going in,” he told reporters, specifically mentioning Baltimore as well.
The announcement comes on the heels of a major success in containing crime and driving down the crime stats in crime-plagued Washington, D.C.
A federal law, the Home Rule Act, allows a U.S. president to take temporary action in Washington, but serious legal hurdles are ahead for use of unrequested Guard troops in other cities – regardless of how great many view the need.
“We have seen in the last 30 days in Washington, D.C., that law enforcement on the streets works. We know that. This is commonsense,” Harriet Hageman, a U.S. House Republican from Wyoming, said Tuesday.
While Trump has constitutional authority to use troops in Washington, D.C., deployments in other cities gets murky. A federal judge last week ruled Trump’s use of National Guard troops in Los Angeles, to put an end to anti-ICE street riots, was illegal.
Judge Charles Breyer’s ruling was limited to Los Angeles but will no dout be held as a standard for Trump’s plans with Chicago or any other city.
Breyer ruled that deploying the National Guard and U.S. Marines violated the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits military participation in domestic law enforcement. Breyer called it a “top-down, systemic effort” to militarize civil law enforcement.
Trump had deployed roughly 4,000 Guard members and 700 marines.
Fulfilling a campaign pledge
Potential use of the National Guard is Trump’s way of fulfilling a campaign promise to combat crime and make America’s major cities safer, Georgia Republican Buddy Carter, a U.S. House member, said on Washington Watch Tuesday.
“He campaigned and promised that he was going to make America more prosperous and safer, and he’s done just that,” Carter told show host Jody Hice. “He's made it more prosperous through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Now he's making it safer by doing what he's doing here and making our streets safer in Washington, D.C. and throughout our country.”
A CBS News analysis of crime data from August 7 to August 25, 2025, found that violent crime was down by nearly half compared to the same 19-day period in 2024. It was also below the five-year average for those dates. During this time, burglaries decreased by 48% and car thefts fell by 36%.
Mayor asks citizens to 'defend' city
In spite of the numbers, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson says National Guard troops aren’t welcome in the city.
In a fiery but vaguely-stated call to action, the Mayor (pictured below) urged a crowd of rowdy supporters to "defend this land" and "stand firm" against President Trump. It was unclear what Brandon was asking Chicagoans to do.
Brandon has issued an executive order that prohibits the Chicago Police Department from collaborating with the National Guard or federal agents on patrols, arrests, immigration enforcement, or other law enforcement actions, should Trump follow through with his pledge to send troops.
"We will protect our Constitution, we will protect our city, and we will protect our people," Johnson, speaking at a separate press conference, said. "We do not want to see tanks in our streets. We do not want to see families ripped apart. We do not want grandmothers thrown into the back of unmarked vans. We don't want to see homeless Chicagoans harassed or disappeared by federal agents."
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker said in a Tuesday press conference Trump is “insulting Chicagoans” by calling the city names.
“The President’s absurd characterizations don’t match what’s happening here. There’s no emergency that warrants deploying troops in Chicago,” Pritzker said.
However, the Governor believes such a deployment is inevitable.
“In the coming days, we expect to see what's playing out in L.A. and D.C. happen in Chicago. These efforts are not about fighting crime or making communities safer. This is about Donald Trump testing his power and producing political drama to cover up his own corruption,” Pritzker said.
What constitutes an emergency will be debated.
Violent holiday weekend
Over the long Labor Day holiday weekend, 37 separate shootings across the city resulted in nine people killed and 52 more wounded, The Chicago Sun-Times reported.
The newspaper called it the most violent holiday weekend of the summer.
“It just baffles me and disappoints me so much to hear Chicago, particularly those who are supposed to be setting an example, saying they don't want help in fighting crime,” Carter said.
The crime problem exists because of weak and ineffective leadership, he said.
“Democrats want to make this out to be that he's picking on them. Well, why are you picking these cities? Because that's where the problem is," the congressman said.
