The Trump administration is planning to use a Navy base near Chicago for federal law enforcement operations against undocumented immigrants.
The Naval Station Great Lakes in North Chicago said it had received a request from the Department of Homeland Security seeking limited support for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a spokesperson said in a statement.
"The request involves limited support in the form of facilities, infrastructure and other logistical needs to support DHS operations," a spokesperson said.
The Department of Homeland Security has said ICE will have a strike team in Chicago soon.
"Across the country, DHS law enforcement are arresting and removing the worst of worst including gang members, murderers, pedophiles, and rapists that have terrorized American communities," DHS said in a statement.
Border Czar Tom Homan confirmed ongoing discussions about ICE using the naval base as an operations center.
"We're not going to tell you how many resources we're going to send to the city. We don't want the bad guy to know ... it'll be a large contingent," Homan said.
Agents with the DHS, ICE, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection would be housed at the naval base Sept. 2-30, according to an email Monday from Navy Capt. Stephen Yargosz to his leadership team, obtained by the Sun-Times.
"These operations are similar to what occurred in Los Angeles earlier this summer. Same DHS team," wrote Yargosz, the commanding officer of Naval Station Great Lakes. "This morning I received a call that there is the potential to also support National Guard units. Not many details on this right now. Mainly a lot of concerns and questions."
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has staunchly opposed additional federal enforcement in Chicago, including threats from the Trump administration to deploy the National Guard to help quell crime.
"They don't seem to want to communicate at all. And that's odd because it sounds like what they're trying to do is march right over local police," Pritzker said of the Trump administration to reporters. "You know, we used to hear that the president of the United States supported local police. We support local police. But now it appears that he wants to ignore them all together and just do whatever he has a whim about on that day."
Sam Barron ✉
Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.