Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has responded to President Donald Trump’s announcement that he had authorized the deployment of hundreds of federal agents to the city — she is adamant that the move is a “partnership” and not a “dictatorship.”
“The President reached out to Mayor Lightfoot this evening to confirm that he plans to send federal resources to Chicago to supplement ongoing federal investigations pertaining to violent crime. The conversation was brief and straightforward,” the mayor’s office said in a statement per ABC7.
“Mayor Lightfoot maintains that all resources will be investigatory in nature and be coordinated through the U.S. Attorney’s office. The Mayor has made clear that if there is any deviation from what has been announced, we will pursue all available legal options to protect Chicagoans.”
Later at a news conference, Lightfoot appeared to more responsive of the assistance.
“We welcome actual partnership, but we do not welcome dictatorship,” she said. “We do not welcome authoritarianism.”
Lightfoot also thinks the deployment is about more than Trump’s claims to tackle crime.
Trump made the announcement at the White House on Wednesday.
“Today, I’m announcing a surge of federal law enforcement into American communities plagued by violent crime,” he said. “We’ll work every single day to restore public safety, protect our nation’s children and bring violent perpetrators to justice.”
The FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Marshals Service and Department of Homeland Security officers are to be deployed in the city.
Trump continued, “My administration will be working to remove dangerous offenders sprung loose by these deadly policies and, frankly, by these deadly politicians. America must be a sanctuary for law-abiding citizens, not criminal aliens. My vision for America’s cities could not be more different from the lawlessness being pushed by the extreme radical left.”
