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This Tuesday, start your day with a story on local leaders pushing back against the Trump administration's threats to send the National Guard to Chicago. That, and more from WTTW News.
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Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker speaks alongside dozens of elected officials about threats to send the National Guard to Chicago in a news conference on Aug. 25, 2025. (WTTW News) |
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Gov. JB Pritzker vowed Monday to stop President Donald Trump from deploying the National Guard to Chicago, dismissing Trump’s latest pledge to combat crime as cover for an unconstitutional federal overreach.
U.S. military officials have been working for weeks to deploy thousands of National Guard troops to Chicago, according to a report from the Washington Post that was later confirmed by other news outlets.
“I am ringing the alarm,” Pritzker said. “Donald Trump wants to use the U.S. military to occupy a U.S. city, punish his dissidents and score political points.”
Pritzker said he would not ask the president to deploy the National Guard in Chicago, as Trump urged just minutes before the governor began his remarks. “Mr. President, do not come to Chicago,” Pritzker said. “You are neither wanted here nor needed here.”
If the president does deploy the National Guard in Chicago, residents face an “unprecedented and difficult time,” Pritzker said, urging residents to protest peacefully.
“We will see the Trump administration in court,” Pritzker said. “The state of Illinois is ready to stand against this military deployment with every peaceful tool we have.”
Pritzker offered no specifics about how Illinois would stop the deployment if it is ordered by the president.
“We believe you don’t solve crime by sending in the military,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “We are being targeted because of who we are as a city.”
Some backstory:
Pritzker and Johnson spoke at one of the most picturesque locations in downtown Chicago: River Point Park, overlooking Wolf Point, the confluence of the North, South and Main branches of the Chicago River.
The governor, mayor, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and U.S. Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin were flanked by nearly every elected official in Illinois, including several members of Congress as well as those hoping to replace Durbin in the Senate.
If Trump makes good on the latest in a long series of threats against Chicago and its leaders, Chicago would join Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., and become the third American city to be occupied by federal troops deployed over the objections of local leaders. |
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The Chicago skyline. (Michael Izquierdo / WTTW News) |
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A federal judge blocked the Trump administration from yanking funding from Chicago and 33 other cities and counties because they have laws designed to protect undocumented immigrants by prohibiting state and local law enforcement officials from helping federal agents.
U.S. District Judge William Orrick issued an injunction late Friday that will prevent the Trump administration from blocking funding for some of the nation’s largest cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver, Boston and Baltimore.
Orrick ruled for a second time that the cities and counties were likely to prevail in the lawsuit that claimed the Trump administration was unlawfully trying to force local officials to help federal immigration agents conduct deportation efforts.
The Trump administration has already appealed the initial injunction issued by Orrick in April in the initial lawsuit brought by San Francisco officials on behalf of nine California cities and counties, including Oakland and San Diego, as well as Seattle, Minneapolis, St. Paul and Santa Fe.
Orrick agreed Aug. 5 to allow an additional 34 cities and counties to join the lawsuit.
More context:
Orrick specifically blocked the Trump administration from withholding Community Development Block Grants, which fund a wide range of efforts including programs to boost economic development, according to city records.
He also blocked the Trump administration from canceling grants to the cities and counties awarded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development through the Continuum of Care program, which is designed to reduce homelessness.
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Leighton Criminal Court Building (Michael Izquierdo / WTTW News) |
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President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order threatening to freeze federal funding to governments and jurisdictions that have eliminated the use of cash bail as a means of holding defendants in jail pretrial.
The president on Monday signed an executive order targeting governments that allow cashless bail, claiming such policies “allow dangerous individuals to immediately return to the streets and further endanger law-abiding, hard-working Americans.”
Illinois became the first state to fully do away with cash bail in 2023 following an intense legal battle.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle on Monday said the Trump administration is “trying to bring us back to the days when a person’s access to money mattered more than safety.”
“Nearly two years later, violent crime is down across our region,” Preckwinkle said in a statement. “And it’s not because Donald Trump is President.”
Specifically, the order signed Monday directs U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to compile a list of state and local jurisdictions that employ cashless bail policies. The Trump administration plans to then identify any federal funds currently provided to those jurisdictions that can be suspended or terminated.
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Holocaust survivor Rodi Glass joined Gov. JB Pritzker and community leaders for the opening of Illinois Holocaust Museum's first satellite location, dubbed Experience360. The Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center in Skokie is currently under renovation. The new space in River North opens to the public today.
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More than 180 current and former employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency published a letter Monday warning that debilitating cuts to the agency charged with handling federal disaster response risks a catastrophe like the one seen after Hurricane Katrina.
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Back in the Day: August 26, 1818 - Illinois Approves Its First Constitution
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At the start of 1818, Illinois was not yet a state, but in April, when President James Monroe signed into law the Enabling Act, the territory was finally allowed to establish its boundaries, form a state government and develop the framework to be admitted into the Union. On this day, 207 years ago, delegates at Illinois’ first constitutional convention officially signed its first state constitution. Modeled after other states, according to the Illinois Secretary of State, the constitution allowed “all white males who had lived in the state for six months the right to vote with no property restrictions and no requirement that they be U. S. citizens. It also severely limited the powers of the governor and set aside land in every township for schools.” This was one of four state constitutions ratified after Illinois became the 21st state in the union in December 1818, with the most recent one adopted in 1970.
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This Week’s Staff Recommendations
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Every Tuesday, WTTW News staffers highlight their favorite things in Chicago. This week, it’s social media editor Katelyn Haas on her favorite karaoke bars.
Katelyn Haas: Hi readers, I’m Katelyn, WTTW News’ social media editor. Another title of mine: karaoke enthusiast. If I’m ever out and about and wind up in a karaoke bar, just know I will be slipping the DJ a fiver to move me and my friends to the front of the line. Here are a few spots I have been to around the city recently that I’d recommend:
Brando’s Lincoln Park
I went to Brando’s last weekend, a speakeasy-themed bar in Lincoln Park that has karaoke every night it is open, on demand. You put your name in on an app and can see what others are queuing up so you can track exactly when you’re expected up onstage. They have a great happy hour from 5-7, and even when it starts to get a little more packed, you can easily get up onstage for your song, without a huge wait. The DJ even harmonizes with you, if that’s your thing! 2265 N. Lincoln Ave.
U-Star Karaoke
This is one of my favorite spots to rent a private room with my friends for a few hours. Just north of Peterson Park, this Korean-style karaoke bar can hold up to 25 people, has YouTube connectivity for pretty much unlimited song selection and buckets o’beers for cheap all night long. The staff there is super helpful with any tech issues, as well to keep you singing all night long. 6246 N. California Ave.
Trader Todd’s
I’m sorry, I know some people might boo me for this, but I’ve spent many a night at this Lakeview mainstay. The crowd is supportive, they have every song you could ever imagine and two different spots to queue up your song, with an outdoor patio to hang out in while you wait. I have never had a bad time here and will always make this a spot on a karaoke crawl or any night out in Lakeview in general. Not to mention the mozzarella sticks are incredible. 3216 N. Sheffield Ave.
Bobby Loves
Come here if you want to hear some award-winning singing. I’m serious, every single time I’ve gone, I’ve experienced pure talent, nothing less. Good music selection, always packed with energy and even when they aren’t doing karaoke, the jukebox plays hits. 3729 N. Halsted St. |
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Where's your favorite place to see live music in Chicago? Tell us why. |
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Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published. |
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