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The Trump administration on Friday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to immediately allow the deployment of National Guard troops in Illinois, arguing that federal agents conducting immigration enforcement face threats and assaults in the Chicago area.
The emergency request follows multiple rulings by lower courts — including the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals — that blocked the administration’s plan. The appeals court on Thursday reaffirmed that decision, finding no justification for the president’s use of military force within the state.
In the filing, Solicitor General D. John Sauer said agents have been “threatened and assaulted” in both Chicago and the nearby suburb of Broadview, where an immigration detention facility is located. Sauer warned that federal personnel were “forced to operate under the constant threat of mob violence.”
Pritzker, Johnson Condemn Federal Action
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker condemned the administration’s move, saying it represented an unconstitutional intrusion into state authority.
“Militarizing our communities against their will is not only un-American but also leads us down a dangerous path for our democracy,” Pritzker said Friday on X.
At a Thursday press conference, he accused federal officials of spreading “propaganda” through highly publicized immigration raids and using “excessive force” in arrests. “Anyone claiming that there is a rebellion or insurrection in Chicago is not telling the truth,” Pritzker said.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also criticized the effort, vowing to resist the deployment regardless of the Supreme Court’s decision.
“Chicago does not need or want National Guard troops on the streets of our city,” Johnson said in a statement. “We will continue to fight to end the war on Chicago.”
Lower Courts Reject ‘Rebellion’ Claim
President Donald Trump invoked a federal law that allows the president to deploy the National Guard when there is “difficulty in executing the law” or a “rebellion or danger of rebellion.”
Sauer argued that “both conditions are satisfied here,” but lower courts disagreed.
U.S. District Judge April Perry said she found “no credible evidence that there is a danger of rebellion in the state of Illinois,” a finding echoed by the 7th Circuit, which concluded that “the facts do not justify the president’s actions in Illinois.”
Supreme Court’s Role in Trump’s Executive Power Battles
The administration’s appeal marks the latest instance of Trump turning to the Supreme Court, which has a 6–3 conservative majority, after lower courts have limited his use of executive authority. In several previous disputes, the high court has ruled in his favor.
The justices could decide within days whether to grant the administration’s emergency request, setting up a potentially pivotal test of presidential power and state sovereignty heading into the 2026 election cycle.
