With President Donald Trump likely to order federal forces into Baltimore, Mayor Brandon Scott on Wednesday urged residents to stand up for the city but keep their response measured to avoid fueling the president’s narrative.

“We have to make sure that we … stand up for our city and our neighbors and our neighborhoods, but we cannot allow them to get what they want,” Scott said.

Questions about how the city and state would respond to federal intervention come a day after Trump said he was sending troops to Chicago and suggested he would do the same in Baltimore. While the president was clear on his Chicago remarks, his plans for Baltimore were less so, and the White House declined to clarify them.

Also on Tuesday, a federal court ruled that the Trump administration’s use of military in Los Angeles earlier this year was illegal; Trump assailed the judge as being “radical left” and then claimed his administration had the right to further military deployments.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and Scott both said they are conferring with Attorney General Anthony Brown on what legal recourse is available should Trump follow through on his plans.

“We are coordinated and working together to make sure that there is a swift response,” Moore said Wednesday morning.

Scott cautioned that the Trump administration’s actions were meant to create chaos, specifically in low-income neighborhoods where most residents are Black or brown, and feed the narrative that crime is out of control in American cities. Baltimore is seeing significant decreases in violent crimes such as robbery and rape, and last month recorded the fewest homicides in August on record.

In nearby Washington, D.C., residents of some neighborhoods have taken to the streets to protest federal agents and members of the National Guard who have flooded the city under Trump’s orders. Federal prosecutors have been unable to persuade grand juries to indict fellow Washingtonians who have taken more physical forms of resistance, including a now infamous sandwich thrower.

Despite that resistance, both Trump and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser have said the influx of federal forces has led to a noticeable reduction in crime. Bowser, a Democrat, issued an executive order Tuesday directing the D.C. police to fully cooperate with federal authorities for the foreseeable future — Trump’s influence over the department would otherwise end next week without further Congressional approval, per federal law.

Asked if Baltimore Police are legally required to cooperate with federal authorities, Scott avoided answering directly and said Washington “is different from every other city.” He said he’s had conversations with city police but declined to elaborate further.

“We will take every appropriate legal action and operate within the Constitution of the United States, within the laws of Maryland, within the laws of Baltimore City,” he said.

Scott also questioned the quality of arrests in D.C. and whether federal agents were targeting violent offenders.

“How many of them were just delivering food on the back of a scooter?” Scott asked. “How many of them were just outside? How many of them just had tinted windows on their cars?”

As the likelihood of federal intervention looms, Baltimore residents have already shown signs of resistance. An “emergency protest” Wednesday evening in front of Baltimore City Hall to “stop the racist police takeover” saw about 75 people come out and rally.

Ashiah Parker, a longtime Sandtown resident and leader of the No Boundaries Coalition, said she and other residents are bracing for the possibility of troops on city streets. She fears tensions could devolve into violence, particularly if forces are stationed in neighborhoods.

Parker said she would like to see Baltimore Police working in cooperation with guard members if the president insists on sending them. At least local police know the community, she argued.

“Baltimore has really done a good job of building their communities back, building some trust with police, getting the crime down,” she said. “A lot of work has been done since Freddie Gray and it’s just so unfortunate that this is happening.”

Already various community groups and nonprofits have been coordinating a response and making preparations in the event the military is sent to Baltimore, said Dayvon Love, a community activist and director of public policy for the think tank Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle.

“There’s a recognition that what Trump wants is some spectacle and there’s a since that giving Trump that spectacle would be giving him a victory that would be unhelpful tour our collective cause,” Love said.

Given what he called the historically abusive relationship law enforcement institutions have with the Black community, Love said he was particularly concerned about the possibility of a violent exchange between military forces and Black youth. In addition to citing improved statistics on violent crime, Love said Democrats should call attention to the consequences of over-policing.

“I’m imagining, with increased police presence and national law enforcement, a recipe for very dangerous confrontations,” Love said.

Scott said the president should be challenged when he says people in places like Baltimore are born criminals, as Trump did Tuesday, or when he ignores the progress already being made in reducing crime. The city should stand up for democratic principles.

“The most important thing that we can do is not to let them win,” the mayor said.

About 75 people gathered outside City Hall for a rally and march Wednesday night, protesting the possibility of National Guard troops being deployed to Baltimore.

Protesters chanted “Donald Trump, let’s be clear, the National Guard ain’t welcome here,” and “When Baltimore is under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!” as they moved through downtown streets.

Several people who spoke with The Banner said they were horrified at the thought of the National Guard coming into Baltimore.

Amy Lee, an organizer with the Free State Coalition, said people she’s talked to are “concerned,” but also fed up with Trump’s comments.

“It’s a bad idea to try to intimidate Baltimore,” Lee said. “We’re not going to cower in our houses.”

The Banner’s Pamela Wood and Darreonna Davis contributed to this article.