Illinois Sues to Block Trump’s Deployment of Texas National Guard in Chicago

Illinois filed a lawsuit Monday to block President Donald Trump’s attempt to send hundreds of Texas National Guard troops in Chicago, saying the deployment infringes on the state’s “sovereignty and right to self-governance.”

“The American people, regardless of where they reside, should not live under the threat of occupation by the United States military, particularly not simply because their city or state leadership has fallen out of a president’s favor,” Illinois’ lawsuit reads.

Illinois’ suit was assigned to U.S. District Judge April Perry, an appointee of President Joe Biden.

Illinois’ complaint was in response to a memo issued by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth Sunday night calling up 400 members of the Texas National Guard to be deployed “where needed,” including in Chicago. 

Hegseth’s memo also said the Texas Guard could be sent to Portland, Oregon. However, a federal judge later barred the Trump administration from sending any federalized troops to Oregon. 

Hegseth’s memo marked the first time the Trump administration attempted to use outside state Guard personnel against nonconsenting states, a move that raises severe state sovereignty issues, legal experts warned.

Illinois argued that Trump lacks legal authority to use outside state Guard personnel in Chicago. The state said the deployment was based on false claims from the president and his cabinet officials that unrest in Chicago warranted a military deployment. In fact, it said, the unrest has largely been the result of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) aggressive immigration enforcement operations in the city. 

For instance, Illinois noted that federal agents supported by helicopters and armored vehicles raided a multi-story apartment building in the city last week. Federal officers pulled men, women and children from their apartments and detained them for hours overnight. U.S. citizens were among those detained.

“Far from promoting public safety in the Chicago region, Defendants’ provocative and arbitrary actions have threatened to undermine public safety by inciting a public outcry,” the lawsuit reads.

Illinois said that the deployment, in addition to causing economic harm and undermining its ability to govern itself as a sovereign state, “will cause only more unrest, including harming social fabric and community relations and increasing the mistrust of police.”

Trump’s deployment of the Texas Guard to Illinois came over the repeated objections of Gov. JB Pritzker (D) and local elected officials. In a statement Sunday, Pritzker warned that Trump was sending “troops into a sovereign state without their knowledge, consent, or cooperation.”

“We must now start calling this what it is: Trump’s Invasion,” Pritzker said. “It started with federal agents, it will soon include deploying federalized members of the Illinois National Guard against our wishes, and it will now involve sending in another state’s military troops.”

Pritzker called on Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) to withdraw the troops. However, Abbott said he authorized Trump to call up Texas Guard troops and fully supported Guard troops being used against Illinois or Oregon.

“You can either fully enforce protection for federal employees or get out of the way and let Texas Guard do it,” Abbott said. “No Guard can match the training, skill, and expertise of the Texas National Guard.”

Trump’s Guard deployment in Chicago has been months in the making. The president has repeatedly threatened to send troops to the state. 

In a social media post earlier this year, Trump threatened to wage “WAR” against Chicago.

This story has been updated with additional details throughout.