By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Vice President JD Vance said there were “no immediate plans” for the deployment of the National Guard to Chicago, when he was asked about remarks from President Donald Trump on the issue and about the timing and size of the potential deployment.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
Trump has regularly said he would expand his federal crackdown on Democratic-led U.S. cities like Chicago to fight crime in a city where officials cite declines in homicides, gun violence and burglaries.
On Tuesday, Trump said he would deploy National Guard troops in Chicago but did not say when.
KEY QUOTES
“There are no immediate plans,” Vance told reporters on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Trump had said: “We’re going in. I didn’t say when, but we’re going in.”
On Wednesday, Trump told reporters his administration was determining whether to send troops to Chicago or to “a place like New Orleans.”
CONTEXT
Trump has also deployed the National Guard to Washington, D.C., a federal district where he wields exceptional power.
The Republican president has much less power over the Illinois city of Chicago than he does over Washington, which is not part of a U.S. state.
Critics say Trump’s attempts to broaden the role of the military on U.S. soil threaten a dangerous expansion of executive authority that could spark tensions between the military and ordinary citizens.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by David Gregorio)
