SCHNEIDER STATEMENT ON TRUMP ADMIN REQUEST FOR SUPPORT FROM NAVAL STATION GREAT LAKES

LINCOLNSHIRE, IL – Rep. Brad Schneider (IL-10) released the following statement in response to reports that the Trump Administration has requested support from Naval Station Great Lakes to station federal immigration and homeland security agents out of the base. Naval Station Great Lakes, the Navy’s largest training station and home to the Navy’s only Boot Camp, is in North Chicago, which Schneider represents.

“Illinois is a proud and wonderful state and Chicago is rightly known as the ‘City of Big Shoulders.’ Our surrounding cities, towns, and villages are vibrant and welcoming places. 

“The President’s threat to send National Guard troops to Chicago and parade masked ICE agents through Naval Station Great Lakes is an unnecessary, unacceptable, and dangerous action. Absent a real need or request from Governor Pritzker, these actions are clearly intended to bully and terrify our communities while pushing the limits of federal law and expanding the authoritarian powers of the Trump Administration. 

“I say this as loudly and clearly as possible: we will not be intimidated by President Trump nor will we sheepishly cower before his thuggish henchmen like Secretaries Noem and Hegseth.  

“If the President wants to root out crime at its source, if he wants to improve local policing and keep citizens safe, he would do better by releasing the hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for local violence prevention programs. He should instruct his Administration to work with our cities as they take steps to reduce violent crime, stop drug trafficking, and protect neighborhoods and city streets.

“President Trump must also take seriously his role as Commander in Chief and allow for our troops and homeland security agents to remain focused on their mission of keeping us safe in an increasingly dangerous world, instead of forcing them to become players in his political reality show. 

“The Trump Administration’s actions are weakening the constitutional protections that have allowed our nation to grow rich and strong and are undermining the rule of law that keep all Americans safe and secure.”

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