Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements come alongside the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding strong objections from state officials including the governor and mayor.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, military troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, an army base roughly 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration advances with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", despite official statistics indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military forces readying for deployment, per sources. Officials indicated the troops would not perform law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Trucks marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were set up in rows. Additional fencing was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, triggering protests, especially near an immigration center in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city initiated legal action against the administration, seeking to block the military dispatch, urging a federal judge to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and dangerous".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an executive order on that day banning ICE officers and others from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on the previous day, he said that Trump is trying to "justify and make acceptable the presence of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has said he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which permits a president to dispatch regular army in states that are failing to put down an uprising or are resisting federal law.
Since starting his second term, the president has sent or discussed sending troops to at least 10 cities, such as major metropolitan areas and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the armed forces is essential to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Statistics indicates that most violent crime across the US has decreased in recent years. In the city, for instance, homicides were reduced 31% to 278 through August, per police data.
A recent poll published on that day found that most Americans disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
