Illinois Governor Says DHS Seeking to Deploy 100 Troops to State

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said on Sept. 29 that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had requested that the Pentagon deploy 100 troops to the state amid federal immigration enforcement operations in Chicago.

Speaking at a press conference, Pritzker said the Illinois National Guard was informed that the DHS had sent a memo to the Pentagon requesting the deployment of military troops to Illinois “for the protection of ICE personnel and facilities.”

The Pentagon has confirmed that it had received a request to help protect federal personnel, property, and functions.

“Any decisions will be made in accordance with established processes and announced at the appropriate time,” it stated.

It remains unclear when the troop deployment would occur. The DHS did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.

“What I have been warning of is now being realized,” the governor said, standing alongside community leaders. “With one voice, we are telling this unwarranted and unconstitutional occupation by ICE and potentially by military troops to get out of Chicago. You are not helping us.”

DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin had earlier urged Pritzker to tone down “rhetoric about ICE” after clashes broke out between protesters and federal agents outside an ICE processing facility in Broadview, Illinois, on Sept. 26.

“These riots outside the ICE Broadview Processing Center and attacks on ICE officers come after Democrat politicians, including Governor Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson, have villainized and demonized ICE law enforcement,” McLaughlin stated.

Pritzker said that federal agents were causing “chaos and mayhem” in the community rather than making Illinois safer, pointing to the recent clashes between protesters and federal agents outside an ICE processing facility in Broadview.

Federal agents used tear gas, pepper spray, rubber bullets, and flashbangs against protesters exercising their First Amendment right in Broadview, the governor said.

“It was about creating a pretext to send armed military troops into our communities,” he said.

More than 200 protesters gathered near the gate in front of the facility, while dozens more crowded another entrance, chanting “Arrest ICE, Shoot ICE,” according to the DHS. 

In another update, the DHS said on Sept. 28 that law enforcement arrested 11 rioters and seized two firearms from protesters outside an ICE detention facility in Chicago.

“An investigation is underway into what appears to be some sort of explosive device found last night near the ICE Chicago detention facility,” the DHS said on X.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has ordered the deployment of Department of Justice agents to ICE facilities nationwide to protect federal personnel.

In a Sept. 26 statement, Bondi said she had instructed the agents to arrest anyone found engaging in federal crimes.

“I have witnessed the continued onslaught of violence perpetrated against ICE officers across our country. The Department of Justice will not stand idly by in the face of such lawlessness,” she said.

Reuters contributed to this report.