The deputy secretary of the Department of Homeland Security said the Chicago Democrat mayor changed course and joined President Trump’s plan to send police to the city.
“The mayor who said, ‘Oh no Trump, no federal officials, no,’ has rotated 180 degrees. And you know why? Because we are doing it cooperatively as President Trump has always volunteered to do, ”Ken Cuccinelli, a senior official serving as deputy secretary, told Fox News presenter Shannon Bream on Thursday night. “He repeated it again today, his goal is to reduce violence. It is to lower the butcher shop. It is to provide security to these communities. ”
The Justice Department this week announced the expansion of Operation Legend, a coordinated law enforcement effort in which federal officials work with state and local officials in places where violent crime has increased amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Attorney General William Barr approved the deployment of more than 100 federal FBI agents from DOJ, the US Marshals Service, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Office of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives in the streets of Chicago, where violent crime has increased 51% compared to the same period last year, according to DOJ statistics.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot noted earlier this week that Trump was threatening to send federal resources into cities with female mayors. He was among the 15 mayors who urged Trump not to send federal police to their cities, but after a mid-week phone call with Trump, he supported him. Cuccinelli said Trump’s “harsh” rhetoric was the result of wanting to help the country, not outdo the elected leaders.
“It is hard, but it cares about the American people and it cares about all the communities in this country. And that is why it is advancing federal officials and looking for partners, whether they are its political allies or not, “Cuccinelli said. “Mayor Lightfoot in Chicago is surely not a political ally of Trump, but he is willing to extend the olive branch and support from federal resources to help them bring peace there.”
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