Duckworth Statement on Federal Law Enforcement Mobilization to Chicago

Duckworth Statement on Federal Law Enforcement Mobilization to Chicago

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) today issued the following statement in response to the Department of Homeland Security launching "Operation Midway Blitz" in Illinois.

"Donald Trump's mass mobilization of federal enforcement to Chicago is wasteful, ineffective, inhumane and makes Illinoisans less safe.

"Deploying massive federal law enforcement resources to hunt down non-violent individuals for civil immigration violations doesn't do a single thing to make our country safer. It wastes millions of taxpayer dollars just to rip families apart, decimate communities and crush our economy all while stealing precious resources from operations that investigate drug cartels and gun traffickers, identify and disrupt terrorist plots and enhance federal gun tracing capabilities and capacity.

"If Trump truly cared about law and order, his administration would provide the Chicago Police Department and community partners with resources to expand promising violence intervention strategies and most importantly, support initiatives that build trust between local law enforcement and Chicagoans.

"In the coming days Donald Trump will seek to provoke a response to his un-American actions, hoping for images of chaos and violence to validate his lie that Chicago is an apocalyptic city in crisis and justify sending in the military to intimidate Americans. The President essentially declaring war on a city in his own nation is not normal and is not acceptable behavior."

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