Chicago’s mayor has not “declared civil war,” but he did sign an executive order this week that bars federal immigration agents from using city-owned parking lots, garages, school property and parks as staging areas or processing locations for civil immigration enforcement. The move, announced publicly by Mayor Brandon Johnson, is explicit about keeping Immigration and Customs Enforcement and similar federal actors off certain municipal properties, but it stops well short of an actual war on the federal government.
The order goes further by offering free signage to private property owners encouraging them to deny access to federal agents unless they have a warrant, and the city will distribute “Know Your Rights” materials to residents and landlords. Chicago officials say participation by private entities is voluntary, but the message is clear: obstruct federal immigration enforcement at the municipal level whenever possible.
Johnson framed this as protecting immigrant communities from heavy-handed raids, and his administration made plain that Chicago Police will not be dispatched to confront federal agents who ignore the signage; instead the city’s Department of Law will pursue court remedies. That choice—to prioritize litigation and symbolism over on-the-ground co-operation with federal law enforcement—won’t comfort neighborhoods suffering from violent crime and predatory illegal activity.
The White House and conservative leaders are rightly outraged, calling the move a betrayal of law-abiding citizens and warning it shields criminals from accountability. This is exactly the kind of county-and-city defiance that invites federal pushback, and it helps explain why the administration moved to deploy additional resources, including National Guard elements, to restore law and the rule of law in dangerously permissive jurisdictions.
Make no mistake: policies that hinder federal agents from doing their jobs put ordinary Americans at risk. Elected officials who posture about “welcoming cities” while undercutting deportation of violent offenders are choosing ideology over safety, and voters should judge them for it. Conservatives must be unapologetic in defending the enforcement of immigration laws and the rights of victims who deserve protection, not political theater.
If the federal government allows local officials to obstruct operations with impunity, the constitutional balance between state, city and federal authority becomes a game of one-upmanship instead of law. Republicans in Washington should use every lawful tool to push back—funding, oversight, and, where appropriate, litigation—to ensure federal immigration enforcement can protect communities that aren’t being protected by their own leaders.
