President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that his administration is removing National Guard units from Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland, despite deployments to those cities leading to “greatly reduced” crime.
“Portland, Los Angeles, and Chicago were GONE if it weren’t for the Federal Government stepping in,” Trump wrote on Truth Social before teasing that the National Guard may return if crime rates increase.
“We will come back, perhaps in a much different and stronger form, when crime begins to soar again,” he said. “Only a question of time! It is hard to believe that these Democrat Mayors and Governors, all of whom are greatly incompetent, would want us to leave, especially considering the great progress that has been made???”
The unexpected move comes as the Trump administration faces litigation in those cities over its use of the National Guard.
In Illinois, the federal government faced a setback last week when the Supreme Court denied its request to lift a lower court’s order blocking the federalization and deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago.
In California, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deploying the National Guard to Los Angeles and determined that Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) should regain control of the reserve force.
In Oregon, a federal judge permanently blocked the federal government from deploying the National Guard to Portland.
Meanwhile, the National Guard can retain its presence in Washington, D.C., for now, after an appeals court ruling. Guard units are also active in New Orleans after Trump granted Gov. Jeff Landry’s (R-LA) request.
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Governors typically have control over the National Guard, but the president can call the military branch into service under certain circumstances. In this case, Trump authorized the guard to combat crime.
While the military is leaving Chicago, federal immigration authorities are still operating in the city. In fact, Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino said on Wednesday that immigration officers will remain in the Windy City for years.
