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What was the reason for Trump's reversal on deploying the National Guard to Chicago?

Monday 15/Sep/2025 - Time: 10:27 AM

Arabian Sea Newspaper - Special

Arab Sea - Follow-ups: Informed sources revealed that US President Donald Trump has backed down from his plan to deploy National Guard troops in the city of Chicago, after escalating disputes with Democratic city officials, deciding instead to send the troops to cities and states with a Republican majority. A leading member of the Democratic Party confirmed that the ethnic diversity in Chicago makes the deployment of federal troops there a risky move. He added that "Trump's team has currently assessed that there is no benefit in making a decision to deploy National Guard troops in the city of Chicago after the weekend's developments that further complicated the relationship between the White House and the local government." The crisis began when Immigration and Customs Enforcement forces shot and killed a Mexican immigrant. The mayor of Chicago, Brandon Johnson, demanded that the circumstances of the incident be revealed, expressing his sympathy with the immigrant community in the city. The Department of Homeland Security responded that the immigrant drove his car in the wrong direction and injured members of the force, prompting them to shoot him. The incident deepened the existing tension between the White House and local authorities in Chicago. Trump had previously announced that his plan to combat crime and illegal immigration would extend from Washington to Chicago, but the Governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, and the Mayor of the city rejected the move, pointing to a decrease in crime rates by more than 30% since the beginning of the year. The dispute turned into a public political argument through statements and tweets, with Trump describing the Democrats' opposition as "a declaration of war on an American city." It culminated in a massive demonstration in Washington against his security policies. Trump had previously failed to pass a decision to extend the operation of the National Guard forces in the capital, Washington, after the legal deadline (30 days), despite his party's control of Congress. Faced with this rejection, Trump announced at the end of the week his decision to deploy a thousand National Guard soldiers in the city of Memphis, Tennessee, even though the city's Democratic mayor, Paul Young, confirmed that he had not requested these forces, contrary to what the president said. Trump also decided to send similar forces to New Orleans, Louisiana, which has Republican leadership, a decision welcomed by the state's governor. Trump affirmed that the National Guard forces helped Washington record the lowest crime rate in 30 years, considering that the experience is worth repeating in other cities suffering from rampant crime. But analysts believe that his move towards Republican states reinforces the state of national division, especially with the announcement of six Republican states to send support forces to Washington previously, in the face of widespread Democratic opposition to his security plans.

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