Ex-President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on social media Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements come alongside the deployment of state military personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, despite vehement protests from state officials such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I will not back down. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of elected officials resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 50 miles from Chicago, as the administration advances with its hardline urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has labeled Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 state guard troops were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with another 300 Illinois guard forces readying for deployment, according to reports. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would not perform police functions but would secure federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were set up in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in the city in the past month, sparking protests, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action against the federal government, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and risky".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for the next day.
The mayor also issued an directive on Monday banning federal immigration agents and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
The governor 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 nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has stated he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which permits a president to dispatch regular army in regions that are failing to suppress an uprising or are defying federal law.
Since starting his second term, the president has dispatched or discussed sending troops 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 combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Data indicates that most violent crime across the US has declined in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, homicides were down 31% to under three hundred through August, according to police data.
A recent poll published on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
