President Donald Trumprevived calls to ramp up the federal government'smilitary crackdown in Chicagoafter a 14-year-old was killed and eight other teenagers were wounded during weekend shootings in the city's bustling downtown corridor.
Ina Nov. 22 Truth Social post, Trump described "massive crime and rioting" in downtown Chicago and argued Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson were "refusing Federal Government help for a situation that could be quickly remedied."
"The people are chanting, BRING IN TRUMP!!!" he said.
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Gunfire erupted Nov. 21 around 10 p.m. local time just two blocks from Millennium Park, where the popular "Cloud Gate" sculpture sits. Hours earlier, thousands had gathered in the park to watch fireworks and listen to live music during the city's Christmas tree lighting ceremony.
Johnsonsaid the shots appeared to ring out during a "teen takeover" that brought large crowds of young people into the city. Officers nearby saw a "large group on the sidewalk" that began to scatter after the shots were fired, the Chicago Police Department said in an email to USA TODAY. They are still investigating the cause.
When they arrived to the scene, authorities found seven teenagers, aged 13 to 17, wounded. Less than an hour later, officers found two other teenagers with gunshot wounds blocks away.
One of them, 14-year-old Armani Floyd, died of his injuries, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office.
"Incidents like last night set us back as a city, and it evokes fear," Johnson said of the violence duringa Nov. 22 news conference. He described the shooting as "emotional whiplash" from the cheerful mood downtown during the tree lighting.
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"Our young people have to understand that they should not attend these unauthorized events that have been advertised on social media," Johnson said of the teen takeover. The event was promoted on social media a week before the deadly incident, and police had been monitoring the conversation, Johnson told reporters.
He said the city placed 700 extra police officers and violence intervention specialists in the streets around the expected gathering place, but admitted the precautions "did not do enough."
"I'm the first person to recognize that we have more work to do in this city to provide safe spaces for our young people," Johnson said. "When we have a setback like this, it just reminds us of the long road we have to build the city we all want to live in."
Operation Midway Blitz
Trump's comments come days after the Pentagon withdrew some National Guard troops the president sent to Chicago and Portland, Oregon, as part of hisnational crackdown on illegal immigration and crimein Democratic-led cities.
The withdrawal of troops was part of a strategy to ensure "long-term presence in each city," theU.S. Northern Command saidin a post on X.
Trump initially deployed troops to Chicago in September when he launched what he called "Operation Midway Blitz." During clashes with residents, federal agents used pepper balls and tear gas, and hit journalists, a pastor, and officers with the Chicago Police Department, according to reports and a lawsuit.
Trump called for thearrests of Pritzker and Johnsonfor "failing to protect" ICE agents. In one incident, a Border Patrol agent shot and wounded a U.S. citizen.
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In late September, federal agentsrappelled from Black Hawk helicoptersinto an apartment complex in the dead of night to search for Venezuelan migrants. They arrested 37 immigrants and said they had captured two members of the gang Tren de Aragua.
Federal prosecutors had not filed criminal charges against any of those arrested and have not presented evidence showing two of the people detained belonged to Ten de Aragua, according toa ProPublica Investigation.
A U.S. District Judge reviewingconditions at an immigration enforcement facilityoutside of Chicago called detainees' accounts of the living situation, including reports of sleeping next to overflowing toilets, "disturbing" and "unconstitutional."
The Department of Homeland Security says more than 1,500 immigrants have been arrested in connection with the blitz.
Contributing: Michael Loria, Eduardo Cuevas, Christopher Cann, Jack Armstrong, Suzette Hackney, and Terry Collins; USA TODAY Network
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Trump says Chicago is refusing federal help after deadly violence
