Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul issued a statement in support of a lawsuit District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed today against the Trump administration in response to their unlawful deployment of National Guard troops in the District of Columbia.  

“I stand in solidarity with my colleague Attorney General Brian Schwalb regarding his challenge to Donald Trump’s illegal and unconstitutional deployment of National Guard troops in the District of Columbia. 

“As the district’s complaint explains, it is unlawful, under the Posse Comitatus Act, for National Guard units to perform routine law enforcement functions, like searches, seizures and arrests. It is unlawful for the president to deploy National Guard units without the consent of local leadership, and it is unconstitutional and a violation of federal law for the federal military to command out-of-state National Guard troops who are in state militia status.  

“The president’s unlawful deployment of the men and women of the National Guard, who have made the selfless choice to volunteer to protect our freedoms, puts them in a difficult position that is unfamiliar and unfair to them.   

“While I stand by Attorney General Schwalb in his legal challenge, this is not just a D.C. concern. This is a national concern for all cities, and for the sovereignty of states and home rule cities across the country. It is wrong in California. It is wrong in the District of Columbia. It would be wrong in Chicago, Baltimore, New Orleans or any other American city. As Attorney General Schwalb makes clear in his complaint, ‘No American jurisdiction should be involuntarily subjected to military occupation.’”