Chicago’s Mayor Brandon Johnson, British broadcaster Mehdi Hasan and more responded to a Truth Social from Donald Trump that appeared to indicate plans for U.S. military action in the city. As Hasan put it, such a post from any other preceding president “would be impeachment-worthy.”
Trump shared an AI-generated image of himself dressed like Lieutenant Colonel Bill Kilgore (Robert Duvall) from “Apocalypse Now” in front of the Chicago skyline. The AI-generated Trump is crouched in front of flames as helicopters enter the city to his right.
“‘I love the smell of deportations in the morning,’” the image is captioned. “Chicago is about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR.” The image also bears the phrase “Chipocalypse Now.”
“The president of the United States just declared war, actual military war, not a metaphorical one, on a major American city, and one governed by his political opponents,” Hasan wrote on Bluesky. “In any other period, this would be impeachment-worthy.”
Mayor Johnson also slammed the message.
“The President’s threats are beneath the honor of our nation, but the reality is that he wants to occupy our city and break our Constitution,” he wrote on X. “We must defend our democracy from this authoritarianism by protecting each other and protecting Chicago from Donald Trump.”
Political strategist Mike Nellis, who worked as the former senior advisor to then-Vice President Kamala Harris, had a strong response as well: “My response to Trump as a proud resident of the city of Chicago: Go f–k yourself. Stay the hell out of our city, you fascist.”
“President Trump’s military threats against Chicago are reckless and un-American,” wrote Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, who represents the state’s 8th district, on X. “Chicago won’t be bullied.”
