Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on social media Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks coincide with the arrival of state military personnel in the Windy City area under orders from the current government, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities such as the governor and mayor.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to back down. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of elected officials resisting his authority. What's next on the road toward complete autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 50 miles from the city, as the federal government advances with its aggressive urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", even though police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, including homicides.
That day, 200 Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 Illinois guard forces preparing to mobilize, per sources. Authorities indicated the troops would avoid police functions but would protect federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Trucks marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and essential items. Mobile units were set up in lines. Additional fencing was placed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed no-fly zones over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action against the federal government, attempting to halt the military dispatch, asking a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
Legal proceedings on their case is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an executive order on Monday banning federal immigration agents and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using military forces as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is trying to "justify and normalize the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. However, Trump has said he would be prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act, which permits a president to dispatch regular army in regions that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
Since starting his new administration, the president has sent or mentioned sending troops to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the military presence is essential to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in recent years. In the city, for instance, murders were down nearly one-third to 278 through August, per police data.
A recent poll published on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
