CHICAGO, IL — Democratic 9th congressional candidate Bruce Leon today called for a temporary truce between Chicago, Illinois, and the federal government to protect immigrant families and reduce the risk of further escalation amid ongoing immigration enforcement disputes.

“My great-grandfather, Morris Lipschultz, came to Chicago as a poor Jewish peddler seeking safety and opportunity. He was murdered here while trying to build a better life,” Leon said. “That history makes the current fear and chaos of ICE raids feel personal. For the sake of immigrant families in our communities, we need calm and strategic common sense in dealing with a president who can act recklessly.”

Leon sharply criticized local politicians for turning enforcement tensions into social-media theater.

“While families are living in fear, some politicians are chasing headlines and TikTok views,” Leon said. “They’re staging pepper-spray spectacles (example) and pretending that’s leadership. It’s not. Their behavior only provokes more federal crackdowns and make life more dangerous for the very people they are trying to protect.”

Leon cited Daniel Biss’s attempt to “outlaw ICE” in Evanston as a cautionary example.

The day after that toothless ordinance made his social media headlines, ICE apprehended someone at an Evanston Home Depot,” Leon said. “That wasn’t coincidence — it was consequence. The ordinance may have been good politics, but it likely provoked a reaction that harmed the exact people we’re trying to protect.

He contrasted that approach behavior with San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s approach, noting that Lurie apparently persuaded federal officials to pause similar immigration enforcement plans by engaging directly and calmly with the Administration.

“That’s leadership,” Leon said. “He de-escalated, protected his residents, and gave his city breathing room to find long-term solutions. Chicago should do the same.”

Leon’s proposed truce would give city and state leaders space to focus on targeting dangerous offenders, restore communication between local and federal agencies, and shape a comprehensive federal settlement that balances security, fairness, and compassion.

“Some may not like the idea of a truce, but right now, people are safer and more secure in San Francisco than they are in Chicago or Evanston,” Leon said. “If we can keep immigrant families safe and create space for real reform, that’s the right thing to do. We owe people solutions and hope, not more theater.”

Leon also called on political leaders in both parties to reignite the effort for broad, bipartisan immigration reform.

“People are cynical about whether a durable bipartisan immigration deal is even possible after so many failures,” Leon said. “But my great-grandfather came here from Eastern Europe with nothing, and I’ll do everything in my power to honor his legacy and protect the immigrants now living in fear here in Chicago. If elected to Congress, I’ll be one of the people in the room working overtime to make it happen.”

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