Ex-President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration 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 endangering ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the arrival of National Guard troops in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, despite vehement protests from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Johnson responded on that day. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to yield. Now Trump is demanding arrests of elected officials resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has labeled Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", despite official statistics indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
That day, 200 Texas National Guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Authorities indicated the soldiers would not perform police functions but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard patches were spotted at the military facility in Elwood. Trucks labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were set up in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the military base for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has escalated deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, especially near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the administration, attempting to halt the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on the city and state, labeling it "illegal and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their case is set for the next day.
The mayor also issued an directive on that day banning federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "justify and normalize the presence of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act 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 president to dispatch active duty military in regions that are unable to put down an insurrection or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his new administration, the president has sent or discussed deploying troops to over ten urban centers, such as major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the military presence is essential to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses nationwide has declined in the past few years. In Chicago, for instance, murders were down 31% to 278 through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
New survey data released on that day found that most Americans oppose the sending of troops without an external threat.
