Ex-President Donald J. Trump on midweek called for the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements come alongside the deployment of National Guard troops in the Chicago region under orders from the current government, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I am staying anywhere."
The governor responded via social platforms, stating: "I will not back down. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the path to complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard units from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the administration pushes forward with its hardline crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has called Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard members were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military forces readying for deployment, per reports. Officials indicated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were spotted at the US army reserve center in the town. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were set up in lines. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities imposed no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit targeting the federal government, 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, labeling it "unlawful and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day banning federal immigration agents and related personnel from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has accused the president of using military forces as "staged tools" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and normalize the presence of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The historic federal law restricts the army's involvement in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has stated he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a president to dispatch regular army in states that are unable to put down an uprising or are defying national authority.
After beginning his new administration, the president has sent or mentioned sending troops to at least 10 cities, including major metropolitan areas and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is necessary to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in recent years. In the city, for example, murders were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, according to law enforcement reports.
New survey data released on Wednesday revealed that most Americans oppose the sending of military forces without an external threat.
