CHICAGO – Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson says President Donald Trump’s push to send the National Guard to Chicago is the wrong answer for fighting crime.

What we know:

In an opinion piece published Monday in The New York Times, Johnson said Chicagoans “love and defend our city fiercely,” and don’t need “an occupation” of armed troops.

He pointed to a record-low homicide rate this summer, the lowest since the 1960s, as evidence that the city’s approach is working.

“Sending in the National Guard is the wrong solution to a real problem,” Johnson wrote. “If President Trump had listened to the city’s leaders, he would recognize that Chicago just experienced record-low homicide numbers, making this the safest summer since the 1960s.”

Johnson acknowledged that even at lower levels, violence remains unacceptable, noting his own family has experienced its effects firsthand in the West Side Austin neighborhood.

The backstory:

Trump has repeatedly threatened to send federal troops to Chicago as part of a broader crackdown on crime and immigration.

Over the weekend, he doubled down on those threats while citing recent gun violence numbers.

“Do you know how many people were killed in Chicago last weekend? Eight. You know how many people were killed in Chicago the week before? Seven. You know how many people wounded? Seventy-four people were wounded. You think there’s worse than that? I don’t think so,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

Johnson, who took office more than two years ago, said his administration is tackling violence through three main strategies: effective and law-abiding policing, violence prevention, and addressing the root causes of crime.

He highlighted new efforts including a robbery task force, targeted police resources in the city’s most violent areas, violence interrupter programs, and expanded funding for jobs, mental health services, and affordable housing.

What’s next:

Johnson said his goal is to make Chicago “the safest big city in America” and that he believes a progressive approach to crime reduction, centered on prevention and investment, will prove more effective than relying on more policing or armed troops.

“We don’t need the National Guard; we just need to invest in what works,” he wrote.

What we don’t know:

It remains unclear whether Trump will move forward with deploying the National Guard to Chicago.