Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin and Attorney General Pam Bondi traded barbs about President Trump's latest move to deploy National Guard forces in Chicago in a tense exchange as she testified in a Senate oversight hearing on the Department of Justice Tuesday.

"He is illegally deploying troops to Chicago and other American cities and has threatened to send more," said Durbin, a ranking member of the Senate Oversight Committee, in his opening statement. "The Justice Department defends the dubious legal basis for these deployments and diverts DOJ personnel and components to assist in these efforts."

When it was his turn to question Bondi, Durbin immediately returned to the same topic.

"Were you consulted by the White House before they deployed National Guard troops to cities in the Untied States?" he asked her.

"I am not going to discuss any internal conversations with the White House," Bondi responded.

"You won't even say whether you talked to them?" Durbin pressed.

"I am not going to discuss any internal conversations with you chairm — I mean, ranking member," Bondi replied.

"I noticed that," Durbin remarked before pressing further. "What's the secret? Why do you want to keep this a secret so that the American people don't know the rationale behind the deployment of National Guard troops in my state? The word is, and I think it's been confirmed by the White House, that they're going to transfer Texas National Guard units to the state of Illinois. What's the rationale for that?"

"Yeah, chairman, as you shut down the government, you voted to shut down the government, and you're sitting here, our law enforcement officers are not being paid," Bondi replied sharply. "I wish you could love Chicago as much as you hate President Trump. And currently the National Guard are on the way to Chicago. If you're not going to protect your citizens, President Trump will."

Durbin appeared exasperated by Bondi's response shaking his head as he remarked, "I've been on this committee for more than 20 years and that's the kind of testimony you expect from this administration. A simple question as to whether or not they had a legal rationale for deploying National Guard troops becomes grounds for a personal attack."

"I think it's a legitimate question. It's my responsibility," he continued. "She refuses to answer as to whether she had any conversation with the White House about deploying national troops to my state. That's an indication as to where we are politically in this place."

Texas National Guard troops were seen boarding a plane, possibly heading to Illinois, Tuesday morning. The president has ordered the deployment despite objections from Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.

On Monday, President Trump said he might invoke the Insurrection Act to deploy military troops to American cities, a move that is otherwise barred by law. The Posse Comitatus Act forbids the president from deploying the military to domestic locations for the purposes of law enforcement.

But invoking the Insurrection Act would allow the president to claim his deployment of troops is being used to put down a rebellion against the government. The president is also seeking to deploy troops to Portland, Oregon. But officials both there and in Illinois have repeatedly insisted there is no insurrection or other emergency in their cities, despite the Trump administration's rhetoric.