President Donald Trump intimated Tuesday he may direct troops to Baltimore after saying they were “going in” to Chicago as part of his crime-fighting plan. It’s unclear if Trump actually meant federal intervention in Baltimore was imminent — his remarks were meandering and the White House refused to clarify the president’s intentions.

Trump said he would direct the National Guard to Chicago over the objections of city and state leaders, also referencing Baltimore.

“We’re going to do it anyways. We have the right to do it because I have the obligation to protect this country. And that includes Baltimore.”

The president did not elaborate.

Trump, a Republican, has repeatedly threatened to deploy soldiers to Baltimore in recent days as part of a prolonged back-and-forth with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore.

Moore and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott, both Democrats, are strongly opposed to any such intervention. Scott reiterated his opposition to troops in Baltimore during an interview with The Banner’s media partner, WJZ.

“We don’t need or want the National Guard,” Scott said, adding that the city does not wish to be part of a “big political game.”

Baltimore is experiencing historic reductions in homicide — there were just seven in the month of August, the fewest in that month on record. Police data shows instances of robbery, auto theft and rape are all down double-digit percentage points so far this year compared to the same period last year.

Both Moore and Scott pointed to Baltimore’s crime improvements as reason for the federal government not to intervene in the city. David Turner, a senior advisor to Moore, claimed Trump was not serious about actually further reducing crime, as evidenced by the administration’s decision to cut funding earlier this year for public safety initiatives like community violence intervention programs.

“While we try to decipher exactly what the President meant today, the Governor has been consistently clear: The use of the National Guard for municipal policing is theatrical and not sustainable,” Turner wrote in an emailed statement.

Trump’s comments about using the military as crime fighters come on the same day a federal judge ruled the president’s deployment of troops in Los Angeles was illegal and violated the Posse Comitatus Act, a law meant to keep the military from performing civil law enforcement actions.

The president ordered troops to the city in June to protect federal law enforcement officers carrying out immigration enforcement and to protect federal buildings from protesters opposing their actions.

The White House declined to outline the legal basis for deploying troops to Chicago.

Should the military be deployed to Baltimore, Scott said his administration is working with the state to explore their legal remedies.

“We’re exploring all our options,” Scott said.

Three weeks ago, on Aug. 11, Trump federalized Washington D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department and deployed the District’s National Guard, as well as regiments from six other Republican-governed states.

Under federal law, Trump’s takeover could last just 30 days without further Congressional approval. However, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, issued an executive order Tuesday that effectively prolongs the federalization of the city’s police force indefinitely. Bowser’s order directs District Police to cooperate with the federal government to the fullest extent of the law and does not provide an expiration date.

Washington’s relationship with the federal government is unusual compared to states in that D.C. relies on Congressional approval for its budget and laws.

Despite many Washingtonian’s objections to the federal takeover, Bowser and Trump have said the flood of federal agents has led to a decrease in crime.

“We don’t have a crime problem in Washington anymore,” Trump said Tuesday. Bowser last week said “we greatly appreciate” the federal help.

Figures Bowser’s office released showed a 45% reduction in violent crime in the District from Aug. 7 to Aug. 26 compared to the same period last year.

Asked about Bowser’s praise of crime reductions in her city under National Guard watch, Scott said “If Commissioner [Richard] Worley had 500 extra police officers all of a sudden, naturally,” crime would go down.

Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, who is working with other members of Congress to restore control of D.C.’s National Guard and its police department to the District, said Tuesday that Trump “should stop playing political games with federal law enforcement.”

“Trump’s threats to invade our cities are not the answer; they are designed to distract from his failures to put forward real solutions to these and other issues facing our communities,” Van Hollen, a Democrat, wrote in an email.