National Guard troops have already arrived in the Chicago area, as President Trump condemns the city as a ‘hellhole’.United States President Donald Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in Illinois is slated to face legal scrutiny at a pivotal court hearing.On Thursday, US District Judge April Perry will hear arguments over a request to block the deployment of Illinois and Texas Guard members, a day after a small number of troops began protecting federal property in the Chicago area.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listIllinois Governor JB Pritzker and local officials strongly oppose the use of the Guard.An “element” of the 200 Texas Guard troops that were sent to Illinois started working in the Chicago area on Wednesday, according to a US Northern Command spokesperson, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss operational details not made public.The spokesperson did not say where specifically the troops were sent.The troops, along with about 300 from Illinois, arrived this week at a US Army Reserve Center in Elwood, southwest of Chicago. All 500 troops are under the Northern Command and have been activated for 60 days.The Guard members are in the city to protect US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) buildings and other federal facilities and law enforcement personnel, according to Northern Command.Chicago and Illinois on Monday filed a lawsuit to stop the deployments, calling them unnecessary and illegal.Trump, meanwhile, has portrayed Chicago as a lawless “hellhole” of crime, though statistics show a significant recent drop in crime.In a cour …
