The US Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected President Donald Trump’s request to allow the deployment of National Guard troops to Illinois.
Trump had sought to dismiss a lower court order that temporarily halted his plan to send military reserve forces to the state.
The US President has already sent troops to several cities across the country in recent months.
His administration has stressed that such deployments were necessary to protect immigration officers amid protests against the raids.
What does the decision mean?
The Republican-majority court said the government had “failed to identify a source of authority that would allow the military to execute the laws in Illinois.”
However, Trump still has some legal options to go to court to deploy troops in Chicago, although this could pose a political risk.
Tuesday’s court decision could affect other lawsuits challenging Trump’s efforts to deploy troops in other Democratic-led cities.
The decision is a rare Supreme Court blow for Trump after repeated victories in emergency appeals since he took office in January.
What was the reaction?
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told the president, “The National Guard has been activated to protect federal law enforcement officers and to ensure that rioters do not destroy federal buildings and property.”
“Nothing in today’s decision detracts from that core agenda,” Jackson said.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, a Democrat, called the decision a “huge victory for Illinois and American democracy.”
Pritzker said, “This is an important step toward stopping the Trump administration’s continued abuses of power and slowing Trump’s slide toward authoritarianism.”
Edited by: Wesley Dockery