Ex-President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor should be jailed for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor as well!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic faction.
These remarks coincide with the deployment of state military troops in the Windy City area following directives from the current government, despite strong objections from Illinois authorities including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
The governor responded via social platforms, stating: "I will not back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood army reserve center, an army base roughly 50 miles from the city, as the administration advances with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though official statistics indicate significant drops in many offenses, including murders.
That day, 200 state guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with an additional three hundred state military forces preparing to mobilize, per sources. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would not perform police functions but would secure federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Soldiers in combat attire with state guard insignia were observed at the military facility in the town. Trucks marked "Disaster Relief" dropped off sanitation facilities and other supplies. Trailers were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has escalated deportation operations in the city in recent weeks, triggering protests, particularly near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action targeting the administration, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and risky".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an executive order on Monday prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
The governor has charged the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "pawns".
At a news conference on the previous day, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and normalize the presence of military personnel under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law limits the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. However, the president has said he would be prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act, which permits a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in states that are failing to put down an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his second term, the president has dispatched or discussed deploying troops to at least 10 cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the armed forces is essential to fight violence and defend ICE officers.
Data indicates that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, homicides were down nearly one-third to 278 through August, according to police data.
A recent poll published on Wednesday found that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
