Trump slams Pritzker on Chicago crime; governor's reported weight loss fuels 2028 speculation
President Donald Trump is intensifying his feud with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker after another bloody weekend in Chicago, blasting the Democrat for rejecting federal help as six people were killed and more than two dozen shot.
In a fiery Truth Social post Saturday, Trump called Pritzker "incompetent" and warned the governor to "straighten it out, fast, or we’re coming."
The broadside comes just weeks after Trump signed sweeping executive actions to restore law and order in Washington, D.C., federalizing the Metropolitan Police and mobilizing the National Guard in the nation's capital.
JB PRITZKER CLAIMS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION PLANNING AN 'INVASION' WITH US TROOPS
Now, Trump is warning Chicago could be next and pointing out that even Pritzker’s recent weight loss looks like a telltale sign of a possible 2028 presidential run.
Trump also mocked Pritzker personally earlier in the week, saying he "ought to spend more time in the gym, actually."
"Six people were killed, and 24 people were shot, in Chicago last weekend, and JB Pritzker, the weak and pathetic Governor of Illinois, just said that he doesn’t need help in preventing CRIME," the president wrote on Truth Social. "He is CRAZY!!! He better straighten it out, FAST, or we’re coming!"
Pritzker is pushing back hard, calling Trump’s approach "unconstitutional" and "a dangerous power grab." He also mocked Trump’s personal attacks on his physique, quipping that "it takes one to know one on the weight question."Republican strategist Mark McKinnon told Politico Pritzker’s slimmer look "looks like he’s getting ready for a fight," while consultant David Kochel noted weight loss is increasingly part of a political makeover: "If you want to look younger and healthier, it makes total sense."
Figures like Chris Christie and Mike Pompeo have also shed pounds before mounting national campaigns.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed a sweeping executive order Friday rejecting Trump’s threat to deploy federal troops or the National Guard.
"We do not need nor want an unconstitutional and illegal military occupation of our city," Johnson said, vowing that Chicago would "do everything in our power to defend our democracy and protect our communities."
The feud benefits both men politically.
Trump seizes on Chicago as a symbol of Democratic failure and bolsters his law-and-order brand with executive muscle, while Pritzker gets to portray himself as standing up to a president he calls a bully. Behind the two men's political theater, Chicago has led the nation in total homicides for 13 straight years, according to the White House.Pritzker's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.Fox News' Hanna Panreck and Landon Mion contributed to this report.
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