Former President Donald J. Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements come alongside the arrival of National Guard troops in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, despite strong objections from Illinois authorities including the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard troops from Texas had reached the Elwood army reserve center, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its hardline urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", despite police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred state guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 Illinois guard personnel readying for deployment, per sources. Authorities indicated the soldiers would not perform police functions but would secure ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with state guard insignia were observed at the US army reserve center in the town. Vehicles labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and other supplies. Trailers were set up in rows. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until 6 December.
Federal authorities has escalated immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, state and city initiated legal action targeting the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on the city and state, calling it "unlawful and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using troops as "staged tools" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and normalize the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. However, the president has said he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in states that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are defying national authority.
Since starting his new administration, Trump has sent or discussed deploying military units to at least 10 urban centers, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is necessary to combat crime and defend ICE officers.
Data shows that most violent crime across the US has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, murders were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on Wednesday found that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
