In House committee testimony, Pritzker will defend TRUST Act, point finger at 'abuses of power'

WASHINGTON — Amid the vivid backdrop of federal immigration raids and protests in Chicago, Gov. JB Pritzker plans to tell House Oversight committee members Thursday that the state of Illinois isn’t a place for violent criminals who lack legal status — and it will not tolerate “violations of the law or abuses of power.”

The Democratic governor will also staunchly defend the state’s TRUST Act, which was signed by his predecessor, Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. The law bars law enforcement throughout the state from collaborating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The city of Chicago has a similar ordinance in place.

“We want our law enforcement offices focusing on their actual jobs while empowering all members of the public — regardless of immigration status — to feel comfortable calling law enforcement to seek help, report crimes, and cooperate in investigations,” Pritzker plans to say in his opening statement, a copy of which was obtained by the Sun-Times. “It is important that all members of the community trust law enforcement.”

Pritzker will appear before the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Thursday morning, alongside New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz. The goal is for U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky, chairman of the congressional committee, and other key Republicans on the committee to grill — and undoubtedly score some political points — about the Democrats’ immigration policies.

Pritzker provided the committee with a five-page opening statement, in which he will highlight the state’s response to the migrant crisis and tout that crime is down in Illinois, in an effort to tackle the unproven rhetoric that immigrants who lack legal status are a major source of violence.

“Violent criminals have no place on our streets; if they are undocumented, we want them out of Illinois and out of our country,” Pritzker plans to say. “When the federal government has a judge-signed warrant for a criminal’s arrest, we work to assist them, regardless of that criminal’s immigration status. But what we will not do is participate in any violations of the law or abuses of power. We will uphold the law, and we will continue to prioritize precious local and state law enforcement resources for fighting crime.”

He’ll also implore the federal government to respect the rule of law.

“Illinois follows federal and state laws and will continue to do so,” Pritzker says in his statement. “We expect the federal government to do the same.”

The governor will pin the crisis at the southern border on “some” border state governors and mayors who “abandoned our nation’s highest ideals — instead choosing to spend millions of taxpayer dollars to treat people as pawns….”

Pritzker will also blame both Democrats and Republicans for lacking a comprehensive immigration policy, which he outlined in an October 2023 letter to President Joe Biden as a failure that “created an unprecedented strain on Illinois’s resources.”

“The state of Illinois chose a different path,” Pritzker will say. “With people’s lives at stake — children, pregnant women, and the elderly who were sent to our state in the dead of night, dropped outside far from our designated intake and welcome centers, in freezing temperatures — and a federal government that was unwilling to address the national crisis in any meaningful way, we knew would could not simply ignore the suffering right in front of us.”

Pritzker will also outline crime trends in Chicago, including that violent crime is down — and 2024 ended with the lowest homicide rate in five years.

The governor has been in Washington since Monday, preparing for his testimony with an outside law firm and a small group of trusted staffers. Dana Remus, former White House counsel to President Joe Biden, is among those helping Pritzker prepare for the committee, with the governor paying for the services of Covington & Burling out of his own pocket.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth on Wednesday said she expects that Pritzker will call for upholding the Constitution and for comprehensive immigration reform.

"I think he'll stand up for the values of Illinois. That we are a state that is welcoming, that's law-abiding. That is welcoming of people who want to be a part of our communities, and that we uphold law and order. But we also uphold the Constitution," Duckworth said. "Yes, we need to get rid of violent criminals, but at the same time, we shouldn't be ripping kids, American-born children, away from their moms."