Texas governor reveals reason for special working relationship with Trump

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, whose National Guard troops were recently deployed to support ICE operations in Chicago, explained the “big reason” he has such a good working relationship with the president: “We both believe in the rule of law.”

“President Trump and I have a good, long-standing working relationship, and there’s an important reason behind that. We both believe in the rule of law. We both believe in public safety. We both believe in the security of the border,” he explained.

Abbott said he and President Donald Trump are “working very closely together to ensure our country is safe.”

“I am delighted to partner with the federal government in ensuring we keep our country as safe as possible,” he added.

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This comes as nearly 200 Texas National Guard soldiers are currently deployed to the Chicago area and tasked with protecting federal law enforcement as they conduct immigration enforcement operations.

Over the past few weeks, the Chicago area has been rocked by anti-ICE demonstrations that have devolved into violent unrest on multiple occasions. Large crowds of what DHS called “violent rioters” gathered outside an ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, and repeatedly blocked federal vehicles from exiting and entering the facility. Earlier this month, federal agents were run over and trapped by 10 vehicles where anti-ICE crowds gathered for days. Nearly a dozen people were arrested.

Even so, DHS said its agents received little or no support from Democratic leaders in Illinois or local and state law enforcement.

Against this backdrop, Abbott authorized Trump to deploy 400 of his Texas National Guard troops to trouble spots across the country under Title 10 authority. So far, only half of those troops have been deployed to Illinois, and the lawsuit challenging the deployment has been heard in federal court.

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Uniformed military personnel wearing Texas National Guard patches are seen at the U.S. Army Reserve Center in Elwood, Ill., a suburb of Chicago, on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. (AP/Laura Bargfeld)

Speaking to Fox News Digital, Abbott said it was “natural” to deploy Texas National Guard troops who gained peacekeeping experience by being deployed to the southern border.

“What the National Guard is trained and skilled at is dealing with those types of civil unrest. They’ve dealt with civil unrest at the Texas border for the last four years while Joe Biden was president. They even dealt with civil unrest in parts of the state of Texas when I thought it was important to call them in and make sure there was no unrest in our state. So these are National Guard soldiers who are very well trained to be able to deal with those types of environments.” he said. “In addition, if there is a need for the elite National Guard to provide assistance anywhere in the entire country, that is also natural. [Texas] The National Guard has been called in.”

Abbott reiterated that the Trump administration has a shared vision with Texas, making them suitable partners.

“What Texas is trying to do is the same thing that the United States is trying to do. And that’s very simple, carry out the functions of the federal government. One of them is immigration enforcement, the other is public safety. The National Guard from Texas is not there to police the city of Chicago or anywhere else. They are to ensure the safety and security of the ability of federal officials to carry out their constitutional duty to enforce the laws of the United States.” They’re there for you.”

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Then-South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem surveys the southern border with National Guard troops in McAllen, Texas, in July 2021. Noem currently serves as head of the Department of Homeland Security under the Trump administration. (Office of South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem)

While he didn’t give any hints about what other collaborations Texas might have with the Trump administration in the future, he said Texas is ready for whatever is needed.

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“No one can predict exactly what will happen in the future. I can predict how Texas will respond. So, when the country is in need, Texans will step in and help in any way we can.”

Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner, Matt Finn, Michael Tobin and Bill Melugin contributed to this report.