Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on social media Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic party.
These remarks coincide with the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Windy City area following directives from the current government, notwithstanding strong objections from Illinois authorities such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to yield. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the path to full-blown autocracy?"
As of midweek, military troops from Texas had arrived at 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 immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 state guard members were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military forces readying for deployment, according to sources. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would avoid police functions but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard patches were spotted at the military facility in the town. Trucks labeled "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were set up in lines. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered no-fly zones over the army reserve center for security reasons until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in the past month, sparking demonstrations, especially near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit against the federal government, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for the next day.
The mayor also signed an executive order on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as staging areas for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has accused the president of using troops as "political props" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is trying to "rationalize and make acceptable the presence of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has said he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in regions that are unable to put down an insurrection or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his second term, the president has sent or mentioned deploying troops to at least 10 cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the armed forces is essential to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that most violent crime nationwide has declined in recent years. In the city, for instance, homicides were reduced 31% to 278 through August, according to police data.
New survey data released on that day revealed that most Americans disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
