CHICAGO (NewsNation) — Federal immigration agencies are accusing Illinois law enforcement agencies of refusing to assist with “violent crowds” that protested at a suburban Chicago Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center where federal law enforcement officers used tear gas and pepper balls against anti-ICE protesters last week.
But elected officials, including Gov. JB Pritzker, refute that characterization, saying that the feds are running a campaign of misinformation geared at pinning the blame for escalating tension between the two sides as a federal immigration crackdown known as Operation Midway Blitz continues into its third week.
The heated back-and-forth began Friday, when between 75 to 80 protesters gathered outside the boarded-up ICE processing center in Broadview, which has been used as the main processing center for the ongoing federal effort that involves hundreds of officers and agencies from multiple federal agencies.
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“For the past three days, rioters and sanctuary politicians have obstructed and assaulted law enforcement,” Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement issued to NewsNation on Monday. “These rioters have thrown tear gas cans, rocks, bottles, and fireworks at law enforcement, slashed tires of cars, blocked the entrance of the building, and trespassed on private property…