Ex-President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday called for the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor should be jailed for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of state military troops in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials including the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on that day. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard troops from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, an army base roughly 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its hardline crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though official statistics indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 state guard troops were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with another 300 Illinois guard personnel preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Authorities indicated the soldiers would not perform police functions but would protect ICE officers and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard insignia were observed at the military facility in the town. Trucks labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and other supplies. Mobile units were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has escalated immigration enforcement in Chicago in the past month, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit targeting the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, asking a court to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their case is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an executive order on that day prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged the president of using troops as "political props" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on the previous day, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, the president has stated he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in regions that are failing to put down an insurrection or are defying national authority.
After beginning his second term, Trump has dispatched or mentioned sending military units to at least 10 urban centers, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is essential to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses across the US has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for instance, murders were reduced nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per police data.
A recent poll published on that day found that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of military forces without an external threat.
