Today, Explained (Vox) – “Trump deploys the National Guard”

Date: October 8, 2025
Hosts: Noel King, with reporting from Dan Petrella (Chicago Tribune) and Isaac Stanley-Becker (The Atlantic)

Episode Overview

This tense episode examines President Trump’s controversial deployment of Texas National Guard troops to Chicago and (attempted) Portland to bolster immigration enforcement operations. Through on-the-ground reporting and expert analysis, the show investigates the legality, political motivations, and local impact of Operation Midway Blitz, the surge in federal officers, and the resistance from city and state leaders. The episode explores rising anxieties and divisions surrounding immigration, public safety, and the federal government’s use of force in U.S. cities.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. National Guard Troops Arrive in Illinois (Chicago Focus)

• Troop Arrival & Uncertainty
  • Hundreds of Texas National Guard members have arrived, currently stationed at a federal facility in Joliet, southwest of Chicago. As of airing, they have not yet been deployed onto city streets.
    • Dan Petrella (02:10): "Everyone is sort of standing at attention waiting to see what is going to happen… They have yet to be deployed onto the streets… So that's sort of the next step that everyone is waiting for."
• Mood on the Ground
  • Tense atmosphere, increased confrontations between residents and DHS/ICE agents.
  • Clashes reported outside ICE facilities, spilling into neighborhoods, hospitals, and even schools.
    • Dan Petrella (02:43): "Things are very tense… reports all over the city and the suburbs of confrontations with agents from U.S. immigration and Customs Enforcement."
    • Protests at ICE facilities led to arrests and DHS use of tear gas and pepper balls against demonstrators.

2. Federal Operations and Trump’s Rhetoric

• Operation Midway Blitz
  • Name given to the ramped-up immigration enforcement campaign, launched in early September after weeks of Trump discussing violence in Chicago and threatening National Guard deployment.
  • The operation involves militarized tactics, including dramatic raids (e.g., apartment building in South Shore), detainment of bystanders and even children, and viral Hollywood-style promo videos.
    • Dan Petrella (06:01): "I would characterize it as a military style operation… reports of them, you know, detaining and zip tying young children… then the administration… produces these highly produced, almost Hollywood style videos…"
• Presidential Escalation
  • Trump issues a call to jail Chicago’s mayor and Illinois’ governor for “failing to protect ICE officers,” following confrontations and protests.
    • Dan Petrella (04:12): "He is saying that they should be sent to jail… That language coming from the president… is not unusual… We've heard from this president… to these two individuals in particular."
  • Some residents physically block DHS Secretary Kristi Noem from accessing public facilities, symbolizing local anger and resistance (00:01-00:26).
• Governor’s Stance and Pushback
  • Governor Pritzker forcefully rejects the notion there’s a crisis, stating that the federal presence is unnecessary and provocative, and highlights the lack of consent for the Guard deployment.
    • Protester (07:24): "To any federal official who would come to Chicago and try to incite my people into violence as a pretext for something darker and more dangerous. We are watching and we are taking names."
  • Pritzker’s outspoken opposition dates back to his political start, rooted in anti-Trump sentiment.

3. Community Divisions and Political Optics

• Local Attitudes Toward Immigration Enforcement
  • While some vocal Chicagoans support more stringent actions, Petrella argues they’re a small minority, their views amplified by the administration for optics.
    • Dan Petrella (09:43): "There is a very loud minority of voices that will say that… I don't believe that they represent a large swath of the public here in Chicago."
    • Tensions highlighted between Black and Latino communities—sometimes stoked by politicians—and larger underlying issues of disinvestment and resource allocation.
• Political and Legal Strategy
  • Debate continues about whether the White House is seeking real security outcomes or simply stoking confrontation for political theater in Democratic-led cities.
    • Noel King (10:55): "Some people say it's about optics… it looks like the administration is hoping for a confrontation…"
    • Dan Petrella (11:37): "Their real aim is sort of unclear. I do think that there is a sort of shock and awe approach to this, trying to project this image of power."
  • The legality of the Guard’s use is being challenged in federal court; past judges in California and Oregon have already rebuffed similar deployments, with a ruling pending in Chicago.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On the National Guard’s Legality
  • Noel King (07:15): "The National Guard is not supposed to be deployed without the permission of a state's governor…"
• Governor’s Defiance
  • Protester (07:24): "To any federal official who would come to Chicago and try to incite my people into violence… We are watching and we are taking names."
• On Community Disgust
  • Protester/Activist (00:28): "You're gonna use that gun on your people? Shame on you. I hope right now your ancestors are looking at you."
• On Chaotic Enforcement
  • Dan Petrella (06:39): "[On the operation] It's been very sort of scattershot and chaotic from the point of view, folks out on the street."
• On Political Calculations
  • Dan Petrella (11:37): "…obviously been told in federal court in California that they shouldn't be doing what they've been trying to do with these guard troops… It's really, really hard to say what the endgame is here."

4. Portland: Perception vs. Reality

• Federal Judge Blocks Guard Deployment
  • Portland has also faced threats of National Guard deployment. After the President labeled the city a “war zone,” a federal judge blocked troop mobilization.
    • Isaac Stanley-Becker (16:46): “The president says [Portland] looks like a war zone… efforts to deploy… have been stymied by a federal judge. But I went to… fact check those assertions…"
• Reporting From the Scene
  • Reality: No “war zone.” Lively, mostly peaceful protests at Portland’s lone ICE facility, with crowds rarely exceeding a couple hundred—even after Trump’s threats.
    • Isaac Stanley-Becker (17:05): "Well, certainly no war zone. What I saw is a lively and at times raucous and rowdy protest at the ICE facility in Portland…”
    • Protesters are diverse—youth, elders, clergy, people in wheelchairs, a topless woman, and even dogs.
  • Nighttime tension increases; some "black bloc" attire visible, pepper balls fired by federal agents, but confrontation still limited in scope.
• Political Impact of Federal Threats
  • Ironically, Trump’s threats galvanized protests that had actually been winding down.
    • Isaac Stanley-Becker (20:33): "Things had actually quieted down… What the president did by making these threats sort of insert and inject new energy into the demonstrations."
• Antifa: Reality and Rhetoric
  • Portland hosts Rose City Antifa, one of the country's oldest anti-fascist groups, but “antifa” remains a diffuse and misunderstood label.
    • Isaac Stanley-Becker (21:51): "The word has been used so promiscuously in recent years… a contraction of anti-fascist… membership diffuse, hard to understand…"
  • Many protesters reject the mischaracterization, asserting their protests are anti-fascist but not solely defined by “antifa.”
• Judge’s Striking Rebuke and Legal Stakes
  • The Trump-appointed federal judge who blocked deployment sharply described the President’s statements as “untethered from the facts.”
    • Isaac Stanley-Becker (25:25): "[The judge] said that this is a nation of constitutional law, not martial law, and called the President's statements and actions untethered from the facts… really worth listening to as we consider what it means that the President is attempting to mobilize active duty soldiers into an American city against the wishes of city and state leaders…"

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:01 – 00:45: Initial chaos in Chicago: National Guard troops arrive, residents resist, bathroom incidents, and protester outrage
• 02:10 – 04:07: Dan Petrella describes troop presence, public tension, and federal confrontations in Chicago
• 04:12 – 05:01: Trump’s call to jail the mayor and governor, and background of “Operation Midway Blitz”
• 06:01 – 07:15: Details of ICE raids and militarized enforcement, including botched detentions and propaganda videos
• 07:15 – 08:57: Governor Pritzker’s outspokenness and political background
• 09:43 – 10:55: Community divisions, minority support for harsh enforcement, and the balance of local political opinion
• 10:55 – 13:03: Debate over federal motives and forthcoming court case on legality
• 16:28 – 18:22: Isaac Stanley-Becker reports from Portland: Reality of protest size and character
• 20:23 – 21:24: Portland protest history and how Trump's threats have re-energized demonstrations
• 22:00 – 23:17: Explaining “antifa” in Portland: myth vs. reality
• 24:12 – 25:53: Federal court block, judge’s rebuke, and looming legal showdown

Conclusion

This episode sharply critiques President Trump’s controversial use of the National Guard in Democratic cities, highlighting deepening legal, political, and civic fault lines. Local reporting counters federal narratives of chaos, illustrating how high-level power struggles directly shape on-the-ground tensions, civil liberties, and the lived realities of Chicagoans and Portlanders alike.

Notable Quotes (with Speaker & Timestamp)

• “Things are very tense… reports all over the city and the suburbs of confrontations with agents from U.S. immigration and Customs Enforcement.”
  – Dan Petrella (02:52)

• “Their real aim is sort of unclear. I do think that there is a sort of shock and awe approach to this, trying to project this image of power.”
  – Dan Petrella (11:37)

• “What I saw is a lively and at times raucous and rowdy protest… certainly no war zone.”
  – Isaac Stanley-Becker (17:05)

• “This is a nation of constitutional law, not martial law, and [the judge] called the President's statements and actions untethered from the facts.”
  – Isaac Stanley-Becker (25:25)

• “They are the ones that are making it a war zone. They need to get out of Chicago.”
  – Protester/Activist (08:24)

Host information, production credits, and sponsor spots omitted as per instructions.