Illinois Governor JB Pritzker on Monday compared President Donald Trump's threat to deploy the National Guard to Chicago to tactics used by the Nazi Party in Germany during the 1930s, warning that such actions erode constitutional governance.
Speaking at a school event in Wheeling, Illinois, Pritzker said Trump "has absolutely no right and no legal ability to send troops into the city of Chicago," citing the Posse Comitatus Act, which limits the use of federal troops for domestic law enforcement.
However, he warned that the president "doesn't follow the law," as reported by The Miami Herald. "The Nazis in Germany in the '30s tore down a constitutional republic in just 53 days. We have a president who seems hell-bent on doing just that."
The comments came after Trump announced the deployment of the District of Columbia National Guard to address crime in Washington, D.C., and suggested similar action elsewhere in the country, including in Chicago. "If we need to, we're going to do the same thing in Chicago, which is a disaster," Trump said, while calling Mayor Brandon Johnson "incompetent" and labeling Pritzker "a gross incompetent guy." Trump also mocked Pritzker's potential 2028 presidential ambitions.
Pritzker's political team responded on social media: "Donald, thanks for the compliment! Let's not lie to the public, you and I both know you have no authority to take over Chicago. By the way, where are the Epstein files?" the publication read, referencing the controversy surrounding the president's relationship with the disgraced financier and abuser.
Donald, thanks for the compliment!
— JB Pritzker (@JBPritzker) August 11, 2025
Let’s not lie to the public, you and I both know you have no authority to take over Chicago.
By the way, where are the Epstein files? https://t.co/PhikjsUkZ2
Mayor Johnson, on his end, accused Trump of spreading misinformation about crime in Chicago, citing police data showing murders down 31% and shootings down 37% so far in 2025. He urged the president to restore funding for anti-violence programs, warning that deploying the Guard "would only serve to destabilize our city."
Monday's remarks by Pritzker echoed past comments issued in February during his State of the State address, when he said the "authoritarian playbook is laid bare" under Trump and drew parallels to Adolf Hitler's rise to power. As a Jewish man involved in Holocaust education, Pritzker said then it was vital to recognize how quickly a constitutional republic can be dismantled and urged vigilance to protect democracy:
"Here's what I've learned — the root that tears apart your house's foundation begins as a seed — a seed of distrust and hate and blame. The seed that grew into a dictatorship in Europe a lifetime ago didn't arrive overnight. It started with everyday Germans mad about inflation and looking for someone to blame"
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