CHICAGO (WLS) — President Donald Trump on Friday said Chicago will likely be the next target of his efforts to crack down on crime, homelessness and illegal immigration.

Trump indicated that the Midwestern city could receive similar treatment to what he’s done in Washington, D.C., where he’s deployed 2,000 troops on the streets.

Meanwhile, the ABC7 I-Team is tracking the latest threats to Illinois from the U.S. Justice Department. Attorney General Pam Bondi is calling on democratic led states to dismantle policies that forbid local law enforcement from working with federal agents on immigration enforcement.

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“I think Chicago will be our next,” Trump told reporters at the White House, later adding, “And then we’ll help with New York.”

The comments came as the Pentagon on Friday began ordering troops in Washington to carry firearms, though there have been no overt indications they have faced threats that would require them to carry weapons.

Trump has repeatedly described some of the nation’s largest cities – run by Democrats, with Black mayors and majority-minority populations – as dangerous and filthy.

He singled out Chicago on Friday, calling it a “mess” and saying residents there are “screaming for us to come.”

“We’ll straighten that one out probably next. That will be our next one after this,” Trump said.

The president, who was sitting in the Oval Office and wearing a red hat that said, “Trump Was Right About Everything,” claimed people in Chicago are “wearing red hats just like this one.”

He added, “African American ladies, beautiful ladies, are saying, ‘Please, President Trump, come to Chicago, please.'”

ABC7 Chief Legal Analyst Gil Soffer told the I-Team while an action like activating the National Guard likely would be challenged in court, the seldom used strategy of deploying National Guard troops is becoming more and more common.

“Until a year ago, you could count on one hand the number of times that the National Guard has been activated, federalized,” Soffer said. “We’ve already now seen it happen in Los Angeles. There’s a threat to make it happen in Chicago. It could happen beyond that.”

Mayor Brandon Johnson responding in a statement to Trump, saying, “The problem with the President’s approach is that it is uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound.”

It comes amid a large-scale threat campaign from the Trump Administration, including lawsuits from the Justice Department challenging Sanctuary City policies across the country, including Illinois, and a visit to the Chicago area from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem calling out local politicians.

“They’re being obstructionist when it comes to getting dangerous criminals off their streets,” Noem said.

And now, there have been letters sent from Attorney General Bondi to dozens of districts, including Illinois, calling on states to dismantle Sanctuary policies or face federal funding cuts.

“I’m not daring them to do anything,” Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said. “I’m just saying they don’t have a right to, federal law and state law separate endeavors, and they don’t have a right to do the things that they’re threatening to do. 42:03

As the I-Team reported last month, a landmark lawsuit from the Justice Department over Sanctuary policies in Illinois, Chicago and Cook County was dismissed by a federal judge. The Justice Department’s deadline to replead the case is Friday.

The I-Team confirmed with the Illinois National Guard they have received no orders from the president to mobilize in the city. As of 6 p.m. Friday, the Justice Department has not amended or repleaded its lawsuit against the state and Chicago over sanctuary policies. If they do not by midnight Friday, the judgement will be final, although they will have a chance to appeal to a higher court.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson issued the following statement:
“We take President Trump’s statements seriously, but to be clear the City has not received any formal communication from the Trump administration regarding additional federal law enforcement or military deployments to Chicago. Certainly, we have grave concerns about the impact of any unlawful deployment of National Guard troops to the City of Chicago. The problem with the President’s approach is that it is uncoordinated, uncalled for, and unsound. Unlawfully deploying the National Guard to Chicago has the potential to inflame tensions between residents and law enforcement when we know that trust between police and residents is foundational to building safer communities. An unlawful deployment would be unsustainable and would threaten to undermine the historic progress we have. In the past year alone, we have reduced homicides by more than 30%, robberies by 35%, and shootings by almost 40%. We need to continue to invest in what is working.

“We know that our communities are safest when we fully invest in housing, community safety, and education. The National Guard will not alleviate the housing crisis. It will not put food in the stomachs of the 1 in 4 children that go to bed hungry every night in Chicago. The National Guard will not fully-fund our public schools or provide mental healthcare or substance abuse treatment to Chicagoans in need. The National Guard is no substitute for dedicated local law enforcement and community violence interrupters who know and serve our communities every day. There are many things the federal government could do to help us reduce crime and violence in Chicago, but sending in the military is not one of them.”

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker issued the following statement:
“As Donald Trump attempts to create chaos that distracts from his problems, we will call it out for what it is. Trump and Republicans are trying to distract from the pain they are causing working families-from tariffs raising the prices of everyday goods to stripping away healthcare and food from millions of Americans.

“After using Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. as his testing ground for authoritarian overreach, Trump is now openly flirting with the idea of taking over other states and cities. Trump’s goal is to incite fear in our communities and destabilize existing public safety efforts – all to create a justification to further abuse his power. He is playing a game and creating a spectacle for the press to play along with.

“We don’t play those games in Illinois. Our commitment to law and order is delivering real results. Crime rates are improving. Homicides are down by more than 30% in Chicago in the last year alone. Our progress in lowering crime has been made possible with community violence intervention programs that the Trump Administration is defunding.

“Our state and local law enforcement partners know our neighborhoods and our streets because they live here too. They are not asking for this and we will continue to listen and coordinate with them, as we always do. The safety of the people of Illinois is my highest priority, so we will follow the law and stand up for the sovereignty of our state.”

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul issued the following statement:
“Throughout my tenure, I have successfully collaborated with federal law enforcement partners, such as the FBI, DEA, ATF, Secret Service and Homeland Security – Investigations, to investigate and prosecute crime in Illinois, as have other local and state law enforcement partners around the state of Illinois. I appreciate the federal government’s contribution of their expertise, technology and manpower toward those efforts. In fact, violent crimes have decreased in the city of Chicago over the last year. But instead of dedicating more resources to that work, the president is focused on turning our military on American citizens in his ongoing attempts to move our nation toward authoritarianism. His actions are not just un-American. They are unwise strategically. Our cities are not made safer by deploying the nation’s service members for civilian law enforcement duties when they do not have the appropriate training.

“To be clear: We have made no such request for the type of federal intervention we have seen in Los Angeles or Washington D.C. There is no emergency in the state of Illinois.

“In fact, even as the president publicly laments the rampant crime he claims is taking over our cities, his Justice Department is threatening to withhold critical Victims of Crimes Act funding. If the president was serious about supporting victims of crime, my office would not have had to file suit this week to stop him from placing unlawful immigration conditions on completely unrelated funding that supports critical services for victims of sexual assault, domestic violence, human trafficking, child abuse and other violent crimes.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report