Even ‘Morning Joe’ is turning against JB Pritzker for defying Trump on response to rampant crime

Panelists on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” called for Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker to work with President Donald Trump to stop crime in his state after more violence occurred in Chicago.

At least 54 people were shot and seven people died in Chicago over Labor Day weekend, according to NBC 5 Chicago. While Trump has floated the idea of sending National Guard troops to Chicago, “Morning Joe” host Joe Scarborough criticized Democratic Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Pritzker for doing nothing about the persistent violent crime that has taken place in the city for years.

“You know, I actually think that J.B. Pritzker should do something radical. I think he should pick up the phone, call the president and say ‘you know and I know you don’t have the constitutional authority to deploy the National Guard here,’” Scarborough said. “‘You can do that in D.C., you can’t do that in Chicago. But let’s partner up. These are the most dangerous parts of my state, we would love to figure out how to have a partnership that’s constitutional, that respects the sort of balance of federalism … and let’s work together to save lives.’”

“Because right now this sort of ‘hey, nothing to see here, moving along. No problem here. Hey Donald Trump, we don’t need you’ and the mayor talking about ‘we’re gonna protect people’s dignity in our city.’ Well, protect their lives, that’s protecting their dignity,” Scarborough continued.

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Co-host Willie Geist further said the current violence in Chicago is “not unusual” and has been happening throughout the city for years. The number of homicides in Chicago reached a 25-year high in 2021, and have remained significantly higher than the numbers recorded in the last decade, The Chicago Tribune reported.

Aside from June 2014, no other single month of June has had fewer than 40 murders in Chicago since at least 1970, according to WTTW, a PBS affiliate.

Johnson appeared on “Morning Joe” on Aug. 26 and refused to give a straight answer on whether he would support increasing the police presence on the streets of Chicago. The mayor argued that the city would instead be safer with more “affordable housing” and mental health services.

Pritzker and Johnson have raged at Trump’s threats to send the National Guard to Chicago and claimed he would be violating the U.S. Constitution if he takes such an action. They both pleaded with Trump during an Aug. 25 press conference to not come to Chicago and fix the city’s crime problem.

Johnson also accused Trump on Aug. 11 of spreading misinformation about the crime statistics in Chicago and that the National Guard’s presence would only “undermine” public safety.

If Trump does deploy the National Guard, he would be cracking down on crime in the same way the administration did in Washington, D.C. The current federal takeover of Washington has led to 1,669 arrests and 168 illegal firearm confiscations, Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed on Tuesday.

“Chicago is a mess. You have an incompetent mayor, grossly incompetent, and we’ll straighten that one out probably next, that will be our next one after this, and it won’t even be tough. And the people in Chicago, Mr. Vice President, are screaming for us to come,” Trump said during an Aug. 22 Oval Office event.

Residents of Chicago have rejected the narrative that crime has gone down in the city, with many stating that they do not feel safe in their communities.

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