Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has vowed to prosecute Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in a post-Trump era.
Pritzker made the comments during an interview with FOX 32 Chicago this week as ICE agents step up their efforts across the city of Chicago.
“The tables will turn one day,” Prtizker explained.
”These people should recognize that maybe they’re not gonna get prosecuted today, although we’re looking at doing that, but they may get prosecuted after the Trump administration because the statute of limitations would not have run out.”
The 60-year-old added that he had spoken with Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and other Democratic officials about their legal options.
“We’re talking to the state’s attorneys and Attorney General to see how they can go at this because what we want to make sure is that they follow the law,” he said.
Pritzker has become a central figure in the Democratic resistance over the past few months as the Trump administration seeks to clean up Chicago and follow through on its promise of mass deporting illegal aliens.
“This is a dangerous time,” he argued. “The President of the United States is causing mayhem in the grounds of our state. He is going after his political opponents.”
”I don’t know why anybody would look at the situation and not recognize he’s moving toward an authoritarian regime in his own image.”
Over the weekend, Pritzker complained that fellow Democrats were not vocally supportive enough of his efforts to prevent ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from carrying out their work.
“ I understand there are people who’ve stood up, I want to say, and we should give kudos to those people,” he said in a conversation with The New Republic.
“I think Cory Booker has been terrific. I think that we’ve seen people standing up—Chris Murphy, Gavin Newsom—you know, there are people who are regularly calling it out. Right. But I wonder about lots of other folks.”
Pritzker has long been floated as a possible presidential candidate in 2028.
According to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average, Pritzker holds an average level of support of around five percent, trailing behind the likes of New York Congreswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, former Vice-President Kamala Harris and California Governor Gavin Newsom.