Chicago group says Illinois officials break laws as they blast Trump

By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson says he and Gov. J.B. Pritzker are on the same page about President Donald Trump not having authority to send National Guard troops to the city.

Trump called Pritzker and Johnson “incompetent” on Monday and suggested that he could send the National Guard to reduce violence in Chicago.

Mayor Brandon Johnson said at his press availability Tuesday that the president does not have the legal authority to send federal troops to Chicago.

“He is provoking on sending federal troops, the National Guard, into cities to plunder them, though those entities do not have policing power. So, they can’t even do the very thing that he claims he wants them to do. You talk about incompetence,” Johnson said.

At a separate event the previous day, Pritzker said the president did not have the legal right to send troops to Chicago and suggested that Trump was trying to tear down a constitutional republic.

Johnson was asked what he would do if the president did send troops to the city.

“Look, the governor and I, we’re on the same page here, and so, legal action will be on the table,” Johnson said.

Illinois state Senate candidate Patrick Harlan said the mayor and the governor are the ones breaking laws.

“J.B. Pritzker allowing Texas Democrats to flee to this state, because not only are we a sanctuary state for illegals, we’re also a sanctuary state for rogue politicians,” Harlan told The Center Square.

Harlan is a Republican running in the 36th Illinois Senate District. He was critical of Texas Democrats fleeing to Illinois to break a quorum for votes on new Texas legislative maps. Warrants in Texas have been issued for the absconding Democrats arrest.

According to Johnson, Trump took away $830 million of funding from community violence prevention and intervention.

“These are individuals that are on the front line in these particular communities, preventing crime, preventing retaliation from taking place, building relationships,” Johnson said.

Chicago Flips Red President Zoe Leigh said it would be insane for the federal government to send more money for crime-prevention programs.

“We had $158 million in crime prevention since he’s been in office, and we have nothing to show for it,” Leigh told The Center Square.

After four mass shootings were reported in the last month, including two last weekend, Chicago Flips Red Vice President Danielle Carter-Walters said the city needs the president to send in the National Guard.

“This is orchestrated chaos. If you look at the SAFE-T Act, if you look at no cash bail, soft-on-crime policies, this is what the Democratic Party [does], this is what they want,” Carter-Walters said.

Carter-Walters disagreed with Johnson saying crime is down and said crimes involving non-citizen migrants are not reported.

“They’re playing with the numbers,” Carter-Walters said.