Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner issued a blunt warning Tuesday: President Donald Trump is looking for an “excuse to invade” Democratic-led cities, and Philadelphians must be prepared if federal troops arrive.

Speaking at a press conference, Krasner promoted a series of town halls — titled “Be the Light, Bring the Light” — where residents can discuss how to respond to potential deployments. He stressed that while the White House has not yet signaled Philadelphia as a target, recent troop movements in Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, and Trump’s latest vow to send soldiers to Memphis suggest that no city is off the table.

“We find ourselves in a position where certain people want to claim a crime emergency that is completely false,” Krasner said. “That’s their excuse to invade.”

Krasner, who is seeking a third term in November, was joined by City Councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Jamie Gauthier. Both leaders condemned Trump’s use of troops in urban areas.

“Philadelphia is not [Trump’s] battlefield,” Gauthier declared, recalling the trauma of 2020 when military vehicles rolled through West Philly during racial justice protests. “Troops in neighborhoods don’t make us safe. Occupations don’t make us safe.”

Brooks went further, labeling Trump “the ultimate bully” who wields federal troops and immigration agents as “personal thugs.” She announced plans to introduce a resolution in Council this week formally condemning the president’s tactics.

The DA echoed his earlier calls for residents to use their cellphones to record any overreach. “Good luck erasing this history, because it is going to be all over the internet,” Krasner said. “It’s going to be permanent.”

The town halls are scheduled at three churches across the city between Tuesday and Thursday. Krasner emphasized they will be forums for community-led dialogue, not government directives.

Underlying the warnings was a political message: Krasner argued that preemptive resistance worked in Chicago, where local leaders loudly opposed Trump’s plan to deploy troops earlier this summer. He coined a new phrase — “Trump Always Chickens Out, or TACO” — to suggest similar pushback could deter the administration in Philadelphia.

For now, the president’s attention appears fixed elsewhere. But with Trump already urging Philadelphia to cooperate on his hardline immigration agenda, city leaders aren’t waiting to be caught off guard.

As Krasner put it, “This is about safety, freedom, and unity. If the troops come, the cameras come too.”