Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of state military troops in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from Illinois authorities including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going anywhere."
The governor responded via online channels, stating: "I will not yield. Now Trump is demanding arrests of elected officials resisting his authority. What's next on the road toward full-blown autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, military units from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood army reserve center, an army base approximately 50 miles from the city, as the federal government advances with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though official statistics indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including homicides.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard members were expected to deploy to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel readying for deployment, according to reports. Officials indicated the troops would not perform law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and other supplies. Trailers were set up in rows. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities imposed no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
Federal authorities has escalated immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, triggering protests, especially near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on the city and state, calling it "illegal and risky".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on Monday prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
The governor has accused Trump of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, Pritzker said that the president is attempting to "rationalize and make acceptable the deployment of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The historic federal law limits the army's involvement in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has said he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in regions that are failing to put down an uprising or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his second term, the president has dispatched or discussed deploying military units to at least 10 cities, such as major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the military presence is essential to fight violence and protect immigration agents.
Statistics indicates that serious offenses across the US has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for instance, homicides were reduced 31% to 278 through late summer, according to police data.
A recent poll released on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
