BREAKING: Trump admin requests military aid in support of ICE operations in Chicago

President Donald Trump said on Monday that the administration would be "going in" to Chicago after a weekend that saw 7 killings and 54 people injured in shootings. On Wednesday, the Department of Homeland Security officially requested Department of Defense "assistance in support of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Removal Operations" at Naval Station, in Great Lakes, Illinois. Trump has not yet made a move to bring the National Guard into Chicago to deal with crime.

The memo, obtained by Ken Klippenstein, reads: DHS "requests immediate Department of Defense support to provide existing infrastructure to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Removal Operations, a component of DHA, to conduct operations in the Chicago, Illinois metropolitan area. This support is critical to ensuring the efficient and secure handling of aliens in accordance with federal regulations and in line with ICE's ongoing efforts to address public safety and national security." 

The memo, issued by DHS executive secretary Andrew Whitaker, goes on to identify Chicago as "a central location for support of DHS detention, processing, and removal operations conducts by ICE/ERO in the Chicago Area of Responsibility (AOR)." Naval Station, Whitaker writes, "contains the required facilities and support infrastructure" to support DHS operations. By this, DHS identifies highway access, fuel, and "other logistical nodes" as essential facilities.

The request is made following Trump's executive orders on the military role in protecting territorial integrity and declaring a national emergency at the southern border, among others. The Trump administration had previously said that they were considering using a military base near Chicago to stage operations in support of immigration enforcement.

While Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have objected to the use of federal forces to contain crime and enforce immigration law, black Chicago residents have spoken out against mass migration into their city. In 2023, as the Biden administration ramped up illegal immigration across the US, residents of Chicago rejected that mass influx, staging protests against it. 

"This is an effort to destroy our neighborhoods and silence our voices even further," one resident said. After a bus of 500 illegal immigrants arrived in the city, South Shore resident J. Darnell Jones said "Politically, having over 500 people in our community would completely wipe out any interest we have. Are you aware that there are immigrant advocates at state houses all over this country who are advocating for non-citizen voting in local elections? What if that happened here? That would change the mindset of what we, as a black community need to thrive here In Chicago. That's a concern of ours."

Following that influx, Johnson implemented a $51 million aid package for illegal immigrants. During a city council meeting, black residents showed up and demanded answers. "We have not gotten anything for our community and we are sick and tired of being sick and tired," one resident shouted before the council, adding "Enough is enough.""We have not gotten anything for our community and we are sick and tired of being sick and tired," one resident shouted before the council, adding "Enough is enough."