OAN Staff Katherine Mosack
11:55 AM – Thursday, January 1, 2025
President Donald Trump revealed his plans to pull National Guard troops from Chicago, Illinois, Los Angeles, California, and Portland, Oregon, following months of utilizing the Guard to clean up crime in large urban areas.
In a Truth Social publication on Wednesday, the president wrote, “We are removing the National Guard from Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland, despite the fact that CRIME has been greatly reduced by having these great Patriots in those cities, and ONLY by that fact.”
He continued, “Portland, Los Angeles, and Chicago were GONE if it weren’t for the Federal Government stepping in.”
Trump vowed that the troops “will come back,” as he expects crime to “soar again — only a question of time!” He qualified, however, that the federal military presence would be “perhaps in a much different and stronger form,” should it return.
Trump’s withdrawal of federal troops from the major cities comes a week after the United States Supreme Court rejected his administration’s move to maintain federal troops in Illinois to support immigration enforcement. The major cities in question and their Democrat leadership have heartily denounced Trump’s law enforcement strategy since it began in Washington, D.C. in August, which was followed by months of legal battles.
The president concluded his post, “It is hard to believe that these Democrat Mayors and Governors, all of whom are greatly incompetent, would want us to leave, especially considering the great progress that has been made???”
The opposing Democrats in question came out in full force on social media, celebrating the lack of federal law enforcement.
California Governor Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) wrote, “About time [President Trump] admitted defeat. We’ve said it from day one: the federal takeover of California’s National Guard is illegal.”
“Trump is backing away because there was never a legal justification for deploying troops in L.A. and cities across the country,” Karen Bass, mayor of Los Angeles, said on X. “The Constitution still applies to presidents who wish it didn’t. Angelenos stood together. We saw through it. The courts saw through it.”
The National Guard is typically under the control of a state’s governor, though it can be called upon by the president for federal service. Earlier in December, a federal judge ordered California National Guard troops to be returned to Newsom’s control, blocking the Trump administration’s deployment to Los Angeles.
“Donald Trump’s lying again,” Illinois Governor Pritzker declared. “He lost in court when Illinois stood up against his attempt to militarize American cities with the National Guard. Now Trump is forced to stand down.”
In late December, Chicago reported 412 murders in one year, down nearly 30% from 573 in 2024 — about 47.75 per month on average, according to Chicago Police Department statistics.
“Chicago recorded the fewest homicides in 2025 than in any year this century, with totals far below previous spikes. The city hasn’t recorded figures this low since the mid 1960’s,” a statement from Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson read on X.
According to historical data, there were 395 homicides in 1965 in Chicago, which is more than one killing per day and at a rate of approximately 11.4 per 100,000 residents. In 2025, there were about 15.1 per 100,000 residents.
Trump sent the Guard to the city in October. Based on preliminary police data, the average number of murders per month between January and September was about 36. From October to December, the average dropped to 28 per month.
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