Philadelphians should record federal troops if Trump sends them to the city, DA Krasner says on CNN

Jesse Bunch, The Philadelphia Inquirer on Sep 4, 2025

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PHILADELPHIA — District Attorney Larry Krasner ramped up his criticism of President Donald Trump during an appearance on CNN Wednesday night in which he denounced plans to send National Guard troops to fight crime in Chicago and other cities and offered Philadelphians advice for what to do should a deployment happen here.

He praised Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker for vigorously — and so far successfully — pushing back on the president’s plan to send federal troops to that Democrat-controlled city and told news anchor Kaitlan Collins during an episode of "The Source" that Trump “always chickens out.” To reinforce the point, Philadelphia’s top prosecutor actually clucked.

In light of Trump’s troop deployments in Washington D.C. and Los Angeles this summer, Democratic leaders have called the president’s latest proposals both unnecessary and unconstitutional, countering his push by noting statistics showing murders, shootings, robberies and burglaries on a downward trend.

“This is a lesson to all the major cities, including ours,” said Krasner of the Chicago’s resistance to the Trump plan. “Stand up — he chickens out.”

While Trump has suggested sending troops to cities including New York and Baltimore, he has not floated a plan to do so in Philadelphia. (Gov. Josh Shapiro said Tuesday that his administration is prepared for that prospect, however.) Unlike his move to federalize D.C.’s police force, Trump would face significant logistical and legal hurdles if he attempted to do so in Philadelphia.

Krasner — who is seeking a third term as district attorney — said that if the National Guard is sent to the city, Philadelphians should use their cellphones to document the troops’ activity.

“You bring this, you bring this light, you video what [Trump] is doing in your city, and you make it available on social media,” Krasner said. “He cannot erase that history. He cannot deny that evidence.”

Doubling down on that point, Krasner told Collins: “You bring the light, and the vampires run away.

Krasner’s opponent in DA’s race, former Municipal Court Judge Patrick Dugan, could not be immediately reached for comment.

Krasner’s comments are the latest in his escalating criticism of Trump in his second term. Earlier in August, Krasner joined city religious leaders to decry the president’s federal take over of D.C.’s law enforcement as racist and rooted in fear-mongering while calling on residents to protest those actions.