Ex-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 should be jailed for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the arrival of state military troops in the Windy City area under orders from the current government, notwithstanding strong objections from Illinois authorities including the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What remains on the path to complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from Texas had reached the Elwood training facility, a military installation roughly 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 "crime-ridden hellhole", despite police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with an additional three hundred state military personnel readying for deployment, per sources. Authorities indicated the troops would avoid police functions but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with Texas national 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 arranged in lines. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the military base for security reasons until early December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and risky".
Legal proceedings on their case is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also issued an directive on Monday prohibiting federal immigration agents and related personnel from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has accused Trump of using troops as "staged tools" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is trying to "rationalize and make acceptable the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic federal law restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has stated he would be willing to invoke the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch active duty military in states that are unable to suppress an uprising or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his second term, Trump has dispatched or discussed deploying troops to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the military presence is necessary to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Statistics shows that most violent crime nationwide has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, murders were reduced 31% to 278 through August, per law enforcement reports.
New survey data released on that day found that the majority of US citizens oppose the sending of troops without an external threat.
