Fox Host Blames Cracker Barrel for Trump’s Military Takeover

Rachel Campos-Duffy calls National Guard deployment “customer service” as critics blast authoritarian overreach

President Donald Trump is facing mounting backlash after deploying National Guard troops into Chicago over the weekend, escalating what many Democrats and civil rights groups are calling an unprecedented “federal takeover” of America’s cities.

The move comes amid growing accusations that Trump is “abusing his power” and “manufacturing crises” to justify militarizing Democratic-led urban centers. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker condemned the action in a fiery statement, calling it “a gross abuse of federal authority meant to score political points.”

“Donald Trump isn’t fixing problems — he’s creating them,” Pritzker said Sunday night. “This isn’t leadership. It’s a dangerous show of force against American citizens.”

On Sunday’s Fox & Friends, host Rachel Campos-Duffy — wife of Trump’s Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy — offered a bizarre defense of the president’s move, suggesting Chicago residents should be “grateful” for what she called “customer service.”

“Donald Trump’s a businessman,” Campos-Duffy declared. “He understands what the customers want. If Chicago’s mayor won’t deal with crime, then of course people would want the president to come in and clean it up. It’s customer service.”

Campos-Duffy compared the military deployment to responding to “market demands,” insisting that communities like Chicago “deserve the same treatment” as Washington, D.C., where Trump sent troops earlier this summer.

Fox contributor Griff Jenkins jumped in to bolster her claims, pointing to a temporary dip in Washington’s homicide rate after Trump’s previous military intervention.

“They’ve had nine straight days in D.C. with zero murders,” Jenkins said. “Chicago can’t say that.”

Campos-Duffy then pivoted to an unexpected culprit: Cracker Barrel.

She blamed the family restaurant chain’s recent logo redesign and inclusion initiatives for fueling what she described as a “disconnect between liberal leaders and everyday Americans.”

“If Cracker Barrel had asked its customers, would they want the old-timey feel gone? No,” she said. “Just like if you asked parents if they want trans bathing suits for kids in the front of Target, they’d say no. Liberal leaders just aren’t talking to their customers.”

Critics blasted the remarks as a “culture war distraction,” arguing that Fox News continues to weaponize so-called “woke outrage” to justify authoritarian policies.

Civil liberties advocates warn that Trump’s aggressive use of federal troops — paired with increasingly partisan rhetoric from his allies — signals a deeper erosion of democratic norms.

“This isn’t about crime; it’s about control,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, former president of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. “Deploying federal troops into American cities without the consent of local officials is the kind of thing we expect in autocracies, not in a constitutional democracy.”

Trump, meanwhile, dismissed criticisms during a press conference Monday, doubling down on his attacks against Democratic leadership.

“Chicago’s a disaster,” Trump said. “You have an incompetent mayor. Totally incompetent. The people want safety. I’m giving it to them.”

The Illinois attorney general’s office confirmed it is reviewing “all available legal options” to challenge Trump’s use of federal forces in the state. Meanwhile, congressional Democrats are demanding hearings on what they’re calling “the militarization of domestic policy.”

For residents of Chicago, the presence of armed troops patrolling neighborhoods has sparked both relief and fear — underscoring the deep divides shaping America’s future under Trump’s second term.