The Democratic governor of Illinois, JB Pritzker, has hit back at Donald Trump for commenting on his weight, saying the Republican president is himself “not in good shape” amid escalating tension over the possible deployment of the national guard on the streets of Chicago.
Trump said on Monday that Pritzker “ought to spend more time in the gym”. While successfully campaigning in 2024 for a second presidency that began in January, Trump said that the Illinois governor was “too busy eating” to lead his state.
The president – at a listed 6ft 3in tall – is a devotee of fast food, and his annual physical in April cited a weight of 224 pounds.
Boasting a listed weight and height that is about three pounds lighter and as tall as those listed in July for the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion, Oleksandr Usyk, Trump has made several personal attacks based on physical appearance in the past, with his targets including the comedian Rosie O’Donnell and former New Jersey governor Chris Christie.
But Pritzker responded forcefully to Trump’s scorn, telling reporters that: “It takes one to know one on the weight question. And the president, of course, himself, is not in good shape. So, he ought to respond to that from me.”
Pritzker added Trump does not read and only watches television – so the governor called upon Fox News or Newsmax to relay his comments to the president.
“I would say also that his personal attacks on me are just evidence of a guy who’s still living in fifth grade,” Pritzker said. “He’s the kind of bully that throws invectives at people – because he knows that what he’s saying is actually commentary on himself.”
The traded insults between the two politicians come as Trump considers whether to federalize the national guard and deploy it upon the streets of Chicago to combat what he portrays as a crime wave in the city. Leaders of Chicago and Illinois have said such a move would be unnecessary overreach.
The president has already sent the national guard into Los Angeles and Washington DC. On Monday, Trump said he might wait for Pritzker to ask for the national guard to be deployed, as is the norm, but may do so unilaterally using powers meant to be used in extreme emergencies.
“Chicago, everybody knows how bad it is,” Trump said. “Everybody standing there knows. We know. You don’t have to be doing any studies. They should be saying, ‘Please, come in.’”
Trump, who said that Chicago is a “killing field right now” addressed criticism that he is acting in an overly authoritarian way. “A lot of people are saying, ‘Maybe we’d like a dictator,’” the president said. “I don’t like a dictator. I’m not a dictator.”
The White House has said that Chicago has a severe crime problem, pointing out that it suffered 573 murders in 2024, the highest of any US city. However, this total represents the lowest number of homicides in the city since 2019 and so far this year crime is down significantly compared with 2024.
Similarly, in 2024, Washington DC had registered its lowest crime rate in 30 years before Trump deployed the military in the nation’s capital.
“Do not come to Chicago, you are neither wanted here nor needed here,” Pritzker said on Monday.
“Donald Trump wants to use the military to occupy a US city to punish its dissidents and score political points. If this were happening in any other country, we would have no trouble calling it what it is – a dangerous power-grab.”
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