Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, announced Tuesday that the “elite Texas National Guard” has arrived south of Chicago, as part of the troop deployment ordered by President Donald Trump’s administration to enforce his immigration policies in Democratic-governed states such as Illinois and Oregon.
“The elite Texas National Guard is on the ground and ready to act,” Abbott announced on social media, adding that the soldiers “are putting America first by ensuring the federal government can safely and securely enforce federal law.”
The detachment, estimated at approximately 200 troops, will focus its duties in Illinois’ most populous city on protecting federal facilities and providing rapid responses to riots or other violent events, as described by Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bovino, as reported by CNN.
The agent also noted that assigning troops to protect facilities would free up federal security forces to focus on other aspects of their work, including enforcing immigration policies.
In this regard, Bovino stated that his troops will go “anywhere,” even if the city of Chicago attempts to create “ICE-free” zones, or Immigration and Customs Enforcement. “We will go behind the signs and make sure it’s not a sanctuary,” he assured, referring to the executive order signed by Mayor Brandon Johnson to prohibit the presence of immigration agents in places like public schools and municipal parking lots.
“There is no sanctuary here in Chicago (…), so Mayor Johnson, you can continue issuing those executive orders, but we will continue to enforce the law,” Bovino stated.
Chicago and Illinois have sued the Donald Trump administration over the deployment of National Guard troops, a process in which they have obtained the support of California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, who already joined the legal process that led to the blocking of his state’s deployment of federal troops in Oregon.
The lawsuit comes after the US president authorized the deployment of 400 Texas National Guard members to Chicago, Portland, and other cities “where needed.” Previously, he sent 300 uniformed officers from Illinois to Chicago, despite the opposition of Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, who denounced what he called an “invasion” by Trump.
