*President Donald Trump announced plans on Wednesday to send federal agents to Chicago and Albuquerque as part of his effort to curb violence in the cities.
The initiative, dubbed “Operation Legend” in honor of 4-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was shot and killed last month in Kansas City, Mo., will send “hundreds of skilled law enforcement officers to help drive down violent crime,” Trump said from the White House.
The president is preparing to send hundreds of federal agents into both cities from the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Marshals Service and the Department of Homeland Security, per Politico.
“Citizens of Chicago are citizens of America, and they have the same right as every American to live in safety, dignity, and peace,” Trump said. “No mother should ever have to cradle her dead child in her arms simply because politicians refuse to do what is necessary to secure their neighborhood and to secure their city. Every American—no matter their income, their race, or their zip code—should be able to walk their city streets, free from violence and free from fear.”
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“Today, I’m announcing a surge of federal law enforcement into American communities plagued by violent crime. We’ll work every single day to restore public safety, protect our nation’s children, and bring violent perpetrators to justice.” pic.twitter.com/gW3cvld1Tr
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 22, 2020
He added, “For this reason, today I am announcing that the department of justice will immediately surge federal law enforcement to the city of Chicago. The FBI, ATF, DEA, U.S. Marshals Service, and Homeland Security will together be sending hundreds of skilled law enforcement officers to Chicago to help drive down violent crime.”
Trump claims federal agents will work alongside local law enforcement to bring criminals to justice.
“Murders and violent criminals are breaking a wide range of federal laws … we will find them, arrest them, and prosecute them,” Trump continued. “They will be in jail for many years to come. And we will work with local police to identify violations of state and local laws to help ensure that offenders are caught and jailed for their crimes. But we must remember that the job of policing a neighborhood falls on the shoulders of local elected leadership.”
Meanwhile, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is trying to convince residents that they will not be terrorized under “Operation Legend.”
“In Portland they ignored the U.S. Attorney, put these agents on the street and I don’t think anyone can quibble with the fact that what happened was not only unconstitutional, it was undemocratic,” Lightfoot said during a Tuesday press conference. “I’ve been very clear that we welcome actual partnership but we do not welcome dictatorship, we do not welcome authoritarianism and we do not welcome unconstitutional arrest and detainment of our residents. That is something we will not tolerate.”
Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has also warned the federal agents who are deployed to his city that “Anyone, including federal law enforcement, who unlawfully assaults and kidnaps people will face criminal charges from my office.”
Krasner added, “My dad volunteered and served in World War II to fight fascism, like most of my uncles, so we would not have an American president brutalizing and kidnapping Americans for exercising their constitutional rights and trying to make America a better place, which is what patriots do,” Krasner said in a statement. “
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