President Donald Trump’s sweeping crackdown on immigrants is coming to Chicago.
The Department of Homeland Security on Monday announced Operation Midway Blitz, an Immigration Customs Enforcement operation targeting undocumented immigrants in Chicago and Illinois.
Undocumented immigrants had “flocked” to Illinois, the DHS said, because they “knew Governor Pritzker and his sanctuary policies would protect them and allow them to roam free on American streets.”
While sanctuary cities have policies in place that limit coordination and information sharing with federal immigration authorities about noncitizens, undocumented immigrants accused of committing crimes are processed by local law enforcement similarly to how anyone else would be.
The DHS announcement follows the takeover of the Naval Station Great Lakes, north of Chicago, which came as a surprise to local leaders. A procurement document for portable lavatory and laundry trailers indicated that ICE would use the naval base as a headquarters for at least a month, The Independent reported.
For weeks now, Trump has set his sights on Chicago to expand his intimidation campaign against Democratic cities. This latest operation comes as the Supreme Court has rubber-stamped ICE’s racial profiling. The announcement comes just months after sweeping ICE raids in Los Angeles led Trump to call in the National Guard—which a California judge had ruled was a blatant violation of the Posse Comitatus Act.
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