Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday called for the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic faction.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Windy City area under orders from the current government, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is demanding arrests of elected officials resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard troops from Texas had reached the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation approximately 50 miles from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, including murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military personnel preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Officials reportedly stated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard insignia were spotted at the military facility in the town. Vehicles marked "Emergency Disaster Services" delivered portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified deportation operations in the city in the past month, triggering protests, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit against the administration, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on the city and state, calling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an directive on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that Trump is trying to "rationalize and make acceptable the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has stated he would be willing to activate the Insurrection Act, which permits a president to send regular army in states that are failing to put down an insurrection or are defying national authority.
Since starting his second term, Trump has sent or mentioned sending troops to over ten cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses nationwide has declined in the past few years. In the city, for instance, homicides were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, according to law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.