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WASHINGTON, D.C. - The watchdog agency for the Department of War began a review to "determine the effectiveness" of the deployment of National Guard troops to multiple cities last year, including Chicago.
What we know:
The Pentagon’s Office of Inspector General will also be evaluating the deployment of active duty troops and National Guard members to Los Angeles, Memphis, Portland, Oregon, and Washington, D.C., according to an agency memo published on Monday.
"The objective of this evaluation is to determine the effectiveness of the DoW’s planning and execution of these domestic deployments, and to assess any corresponding impact on DoW readiness," the memo stated.
The watchdog agency said it is launching the evaluation in response to a request from members of the U.S. Senate last October, including both Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth, of Illinois.
What we don't know:
It was unclear exactly what the inspector general would use to measure the "effectiveness" of the deployments.
The backstory:
Last October, President Donald Trump authorized the mobilization of at least 300 Illinois National Guard members to protect federal personnel and property in the Chicago area.
That was in response to the at-times heated protests against Operation Midway Blitz, the Trump administration’s sweeping immigration enforcement campaign in Chicago and the surrounding suburbs.
About 375 Illinois National Guard members were mobilized, along with about 200 Texas National Guard members who briefly arrived in the Chicago area, but they were never deployed after state officials successfully sued the administration.
A federal judge said she found no substantial evidence to legally justify the Trump administration’s use of National Guard troops during the immigration operation. The Supreme Court declined to overrule a judge’s block of the deployment of guardsmen into Chicago.
Democratic leaders in Illinois argued that the use of National Guard troops was wasteful and illegal. They said members of the military had no requisite training in local law enforcement and that their use domestically would impair their ability to prepare for their normal missions.
By the new year, Trump said he was removing National Guard members from the Chicago area, and they were demobilized by late January.
Through the end of 2025, the deployment of National Guard members to Chicago cost the federal government about $21 million, according to a report by the Congressional Budget Office.