United States President Donald Trump has reportedly threatened to unleash his newly rebranded “Department of War” on Chicago, as thousands of protesters marched in both Chicago and Washington DC in opposition to the deployment of National Guard troops and immigration agents to Democratic-led cities.
Trump’s threat, which he posted on his Truth Social platform, featured a parody image from the movie Apocalypse Now, depicting a ball of flames with helicopters hovering over the skyline of Chicago.
Democratic Governor of Illinois JB Pritzker expressed outrage over Trump’s post, calling him a “wannabe dictator” and stating that the state “won’t be intimidated.” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also denounced Trump’s threat as “beneath the honor of our nation.”
In response to Trump’s suggested name change of the Department of Defense to Department of War, he defended the decision, claiming it sends “a message of victory” to the world.
Both Chicagoans and Washingtonians have participated in protests, with some drawing parallels between the proposed ICE crackdown in Chicago and Israel’s presence in Gaza. Despite Trump’s deployment of 2,000 troops to fight crime in Washington DC, crime rates in the capital had reached a 30-year low last year.
Source: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/9/7/trump-threatens-war-on-chicago-as-thousands-protest-federal-crackdown?traffic_source=rss
