She Doesnt want Trump to send federal agents to fight crime.
Donald Trump is set to escalate his federal intervention in cities Wednesday by expanding 'Operation Legend,' deploying FBI and other agents to Chicago and Albuquerque to quell what he claims is out of control violence.
The move was to be announced Wednesday afternoon by Trump at the White House - putting him once again at odds with Democratic mayors, especially Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
They have opposed deploying federal forces to tackle protests. But Operation Legend, which was started in Kansas City, MO, involves surging Department of Justice, not Department of Homeland Security, agents to tackle crime rather then protests.
Lightfoot offered some off-ramp to the tensions Wednesday, saying a plan to surge FBI and DEA agents to help her city contend with local crime had her approval - but not an 'undemocratic' insertion of unidentified Homeland Security agents, as Trump has ordered in Portland.
Her statement signaled a possible de-escalation as critics fume about the Trump administration's use of 'secret' Homeland Security Investigations agents who have taken part in violent clashes with protesters in Portland.
Lightfoot, who has publicly clashed with President Trump, had vowed there would be no 'Portland- deployment' in her city, just hours before gun violence erupted at a funeral.
Fifteen people were wounded on Chicago's South Side in the shooting outside a funeral home Tuesday night. Police said at least 60 bullets were fired in the shootout when gunmen in a car opened fire on the funeral party, who then returned fire on the vehicle.
Violent crime is soaring across Chicago, with 12 killed in shootings and another 51 injured this weekend.
The Trump expansions of Operation Legend puts AG Bill Barr's resources into both Chicago and Albuquerque.
While crime has soared in Chicago - there were 116 murders over the 28 days through July 19, an increase of nearly 200 percent, police department data shows - the reason for the deployment to the New Mexico city is less clear-cut.
OPERATION LEGEND: FEDS' SURGE IN KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, SPREADS
Operation Legend is named for four-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was asleep in his mother’s apartment in Kansas City, Missouri, when he was killed by gunfire from outside the home.
The killing came amid a 40 per cent increase in homicides in the city so far this year.
In the wake of the June 29 killing, the city’s mayor welcomed help from the Department of Justice to crackdown on killings.
A total of 100 FBI, U.S. Marshals, DEA and ATF were ordered by Attorney General Bill Barr to surge into the city, working with local police to tackle violent crime.
The operation, launched on July 8, was intended to bring an ‘increase in prosecutions’ which have yet to materialize.
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The Bernalillo Democratic sheriff, Manuel Gonzales, was expected at the White House Wednesday, the Albuquerque Journal reported, but the city’s mayor Tim Keller - also a Democrat - said he did not want federal assistance.
Operation Legend was launched in Kansas City at the invitation of local officials, who were concerned about a rise in gun crime - not about protests.
It has seen FBI, DEA and ATF agents increase their presence in the city.
It announced its first arrest Monday: Monty W. Ray, 20, who agents pulled over in a stolen vehicle. They called him a 'violent crime waiting to happen.'
He had outstanding warrants for assault on an officer and fleeing after he allegedly ran over a police officer’s foot. His lawyer said he was a habitual drug user.
In Chicago, police superintendent David Brown blamed turf battles among the roughly 117,000 gang members in the city of 2.7 million people, where one shooting begets another in an endless cycle of revenge.
‘This same cycle repeats itself over and over and over again. This cycle is fueled by street gangs, guns and drugs,’ he said. ‘Too many people in Chicago have been touched by gun violence.’
Lightfoot also vowed in a tweet before that incident: 'Under no circumstances will I allow Donald Trump’s troops to come to Chicago and terrorize our residents.'
Lightfoot, a former federal prosecutor, told reporters Tuesday she spoke with U.S. John Lausch and received reassurances, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. On Monday, the Chicago Tribune reported DHS would dispatch 150 of its HSI agents to the city, after Trump said he was ‘sending in law enforcement.’
According to an HSI website, its agents tackle a variety of crime, including ‘narcotics and weapons smuggling/trafficking’ as well as ‘transnational gang activity.’
‘I don’t put anything past this administration, which is why we will continue to be diligent and why we will continue to be ready,’ sad Lightfoot. 'If we need to stop them and use the courts to do so, we are ready to do that