The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Friday to allow it to deploy National Guard troops in Illinois against the wishes of state and local officials, a move now blocked by lower courts. President Trump maintains that the troops are needed to protect immigration officers and fight crime in the Chicago area. Local and state leaders say such a deployment is unlawful and unnecessary, the Washington Post reports, and they have pushed back against his portrayals of their communities as besieged by crime. A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order this month preventing a deployment in and around Chicago, and an appeals court left that order in place.
The emergency request comes as part of a broader effort to use federal force in cities including Portland; Washington, DC; and Los Angeles. Friday's filing marked the first time the administration has sought the Supreme Court's intervention on the troop deployments. Solicitor General D. John Sauer wrote in it that the situation in Illinois reflects a "disturbing and recurring pattern" of meeting federal officers trying to enforce immigration law with "prolonged, coordinated, violent resistance," per the Hill.
The administration's filing criticized US District Judge April Perry for disregarding what it called "the facts on the ground" and overruling the president's military decisions. The Seventh Circuit panel found that while protests in Illinois have been vigorous and sometimes violent, they do not amount to a "rebellion against federal authority." The Supreme Court has regularly granted Trump's emergency appeals since he returned to office on issues including barring transgender people from the military, claw back billions of dollars of congressionally approved spending, and firing Senate-confirmed leaders of agencies, the AP points out.