Chicago is in the Trump administration's sights for its next immigration
crackdown
[August 30, 2025]
By REBECCA SANTANA and ELLIOT SPAGAT
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump's administration plans to surge
officers to Chicago for an immigration crackdown in its latest move to
expand the federal law enforcement presence in major Democratic-run
cities, according to two U.S. officials.
The operation in the country's third-largest city is expected to last
about 30 days and could start as early as Sept. 5, a Department of
Homeland Security official told The Associated Press on Friday. Another
U.S. official said the timing for what could be a sustained immigration
enforcement effort resembling this summer's operations in Los Angeles is
awaiting final approval.
Both officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss plans that
had not been made public.
Chicago is home to a large immigrant population, and both the city and
the state of Illinois have some of the country's strongest rules against
cooperating with federal government immigration enforcement efforts.
That has often put the city and the state at odds with Trump's
administration as it tries to carry out his mass deportation agenda.
The Trump administration asked the military this week for use of the
Naval Station Great Lakes, north of Chicago, to support immigration
enforcement.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection
and other federal agencies would take part in the planned Chicago
operation, according to the federal officials who spoke to The
Associated Press. Unlike the recent federal takeover of policing in
Washington, it is not expected to rely on the National Guard or military
and is focused exclusively on immigration instead of being cast as part
of a broad campaign against crime.
The Republican administration is likely to face resistance to any
operation from the region's top Democratic officials, as it has in
California from Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, like Newsom, has been trading barbs with
Trump and his allies.
Pritzker said this week that Chicago doesn't want military intervention
to fight crime. On Friday, the Democrat noted that ICE is a civilian law
enforcement agency and can legally operate in the city, “but we don’t
appreciate when they mistreat our residents, many of whom have been here
for decades.”
“We now have a president and a federal government that’s going after
them, hunting people down and disappearing them off the streets,”
Pritzker said after a school visit in the city's south suburbs. “Men
with masks are grabbing people off the streets and taking them away.
That’s just shameful.”
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A person checks a cell phone while waiting to talk to
representatives during an ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement,
hiring fair Tuesday, Aug. 26, 2025, in Arlington, Texas. (AP
Photo/Julio Cortez)
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson called the development “deeply
concerning.” The city has developed and is distributing a “Family
Preparedness Campaign” to help families “plan for potential
separation” with guidance for talking to family members, gathering
critical documents, attending planned workshops and seeking help
from Congress, consulates and immigrant advocacy groups.
“We reject any attempts to put Chicagoans in danger as a means of
furthering the president’s political ends...,” Johnson said in a
statement. “Sending in militarized immigration enforcement will only
cause chaos and fear in our communities.”
If ICE comes, all city departments will be prepared to “ensure that
Chicagoans know their rights,” Johnson said.
The Department of Homeland Security said this week that it has made
5,000 immigration arrests in the Los Angeles area since launching a
sustained crackdown in the nation’s second-largest metropolitan area
on June 6. Authorities are undeterred by a temporary court order
prohibiting racial profiling in Los Angeles, which the
administration has challenged before the Supreme Court.
“Make no mistake: If you are here illegally, we will find you,
arrest you and send you back. This is just the beginning,” Secretary
Kristi Noem said when announcing the arrest milestone in Los
Angeles.
The Los Angeles operation has been marked by large, lightning-quick
shows of force by heavily armed, masked agents in unmarked cars and
civilian dress, often at Home Depots and car washes. The Mexican
Consulate in Los Angeles said this week that 15% of Mexican citizens
arrested so far work in construction, followed by car washes at 13%,
based on hundreds of interviews it has conducted.
___
Spagat reported from San Diego. Associated Press writer John
O'Connor contributed from Springfield, Ill.
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