SCHNEIDER SLAMS TRUMP’S ‘OPERATION MIDWAY BLITZ’
WASHINGTON, DC – Rep. Brad Schneider (IL-10) released the following statement in response to the Trump Administration’s announcement that it is beginning to send a surge of homeland security agents to the Chicago area:
“President Trump threatened to bring war to the streets of Chicago, and today his administration is advancing that threat with ‘Operation Midway Blitz.’
“The Department of Homeland Security has said that the ‘operation’ is in honor of Katie Abraham who was tragically killed earlier this year in a horrific drunk driving hit and run.
“There is no doubt too many people across the country are killed or severely injured by drunk drivers every day. We should do all that we can to save lives and prevent these tragedies – just as we can and must do all we can to prevent violent crime in our communities and secure our borders.
“But let’s be honest – this ‘operation’ is not about making our communities or roads safer. If it was, the administration wouldn’t be holding up $158 million for gun violence prevention programs and $800 million to prevent violent crime.
“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.
“Americans don’t want war on our streets. They don’t want masked ICE agents parading through our neighborhoods and scaring our families. They want peace, safety, and security.
“The President would do better to work seriously with cities to address and prevent crime, support local police and law enforcement officials who work hard every day to keep communities safe, to identify and arrest violent criminals and gang members, and to provide a pathway to citizenship for people who have lived here peacefully and contributed to our communities for decades.
“Unfortunately, we know the President is not interested in that – in working together to make us safer. He’s really interested in putting on a political reality show, using law enforcement and troops as pawns in his game.”
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