Published: 1:17pm, 9 Sep 2025Updated: 1:38pm, 9 Sep 2025
US President Donald Trump has started his immigration crackdown in Chicago, with federal agents stepping up enforcement in an escalating campaign against Democratic-run cities that the White House said were suffering from rampant crime and disorder.
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Operation Midway Blitz has begun in the city and other parts of Illinois targeting “criminal illegal aliens”, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on Monday. DHS blamed Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat and potential presidential hopeful in 2028, for sanctuary policies that it said help shield lawbreakers.
The federal action underscores the intensifying national confrontation between the White House and Democratic mayors and governors who have bristled at Trump’s efforts to intervene in local policing to advance his goal of mass deportations. The move in Chicago drew a rebuke from Pritzker, who accused Trump of needlessly sowing fear in the third-largest US city.
“Once again, this isn’t about fighting crime,” Pritzker said in a social media post. “Instead of taking steps to work with us on public safety, the Trump administration’s focused on scaring Illinoisians.”
Without providing details of the mission, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement posted a photo on social media Monday of an ICE car with the landmark Chicago Board of Trade building and Willis Tower in the background.
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