Chicago mayor: We can’t let federal officials ‘play police’ in our city

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) doubled down Sunday on her call for the Trump administration not to send federal troops to her city. 

Lightfoot and President Trump have feuded over violence in the city for weeks, with Lightfoot pushing back on Trump’s warnings to send federal officials to Chicago to assist local law enforcement. 

CNN’s Jake Tapper asked the mayor if she would support increased federal presence in Chicago if they coordinated with local officials. 

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, no troops, no agents that  are coming in outside of our knowledge, notification, and control that are violating people’s constitutional rights. That’s the framework,” Lightfoot said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“We  can’t just allow anyone to come into Chicago, play police in our streets and neighborhoods when they don’t know the first thing about our city. That’s a recipe for disaster,” she added. “That’s what you’re seeing playing out in Portland on a nightly basis, we don’t need that here. That’s not a value add, it doesn’t help enhance our public safety.” 

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot reacts to increased federal presence in her city: “We can’t just allow anyone to come into Chicago, play police in our streets, in our neighborhoods when they don’t know the first thing about our city. That’s a recipe for disaster.” #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/eZO3Zng6vV

— State of the Union (@CNNSotu) July 26, 2020

Democrats and local Portland officials have pushed back on the presence of federal officials in that city, claiming it is not helping to limit violence in the city. 

Asked about protests outside her house for accepting federal help, Lightfoot clarified that she is not allowing the Trump administration to send in federal troops without coordination with local officials

“Let me be clear, this is not about working with the Trump administration. For decades now in major cities across the country, FBI, DEA, AFT, those agents have been in our districts and do work and work in concert with local law enforcement to help support a number of efforts, not the least of which is violence in our cities,” Lightfoot said. 

She said an opportunity presented itself under the management of the U.S. attorney in Chicago.

“I stress that because that’s, unlike what we saw in Portland where the administration parachuted in these additional federal agents without consulting anybody locally and ignoring the local U.S. attorney, very different circumstance here in Chicago,” she said. 

Trump said Wednesday his administration is sending federal law enforcement officers into Chicago and Albuquerque, despite backlash over the administration’s use of deferral force in Portland. 

Lightfoot has urged Trump instead to pass gun reform measures, including a universal background checks bill, which she said would aid the city in curbing violence.