‘Landed in Chicago!’: Border Patrol Chief arrives in city amid federal immigration crackdown

CHICAGO – The head of U.S. Border Patrol announced his arrival in Chicago on Thursday.

Chief Michael Banks posted two short videos to X at 8:42 a.m., stating that he was in the city.

“Landed in Chicago! The mission here is as vital as anywhere else on the line. We will not allow criminal aliens to take root in our communities,” the post read.

Dig deeper:

Banks is the latest high-ranking government official to visit Chicago as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

On Sept. 16, Border Patrol launched Operation At-Large in the city with Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Sec. Kristi Noem and Commander Gregory Bovino both making appearances.

Another local effort from DHS, Operation Midway Blitz, has resulted in more than 500 arrests, officials announced Monday.

The other side:

On Monday, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he’s not necessarily buying the official numbers from DHS.

“Fewer than 30% of those who’ve been arrested have any kind of criminal background whatsoever,” Durbin said. “So 70% of the people who are being detained have no criminal record. The president can rant about rapists and murderers and terrorists and criminally insane people coming in as immigrants. But those who are being arrested don’t have any indication of that behavior. So if we’re going to make America safe, let’s put the resources into stopping criminals.”

Big picture view:

ICE has been ramping up its mass deportation efforts since Trump took office in January, including in large cities such as Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.

In recent weeks, Trump has expressed interest in cracking down on crime in Chicago after a multi-agency surge in D.C. has led to a reported decrease in crime and hundreds of immigration-related arrests.