Ex-President Donald Trump on Wednesday called for the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic faction.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of National Guard troops in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, despite strong objections from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the administration pushes forward with its hardline urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", despite police data indicate significant drops in most criminal activities, such as murders.
That day, 200 Texas National Guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the region, with another 300 state military personnel readying for deployment, according to reports. Officials indicated the soldiers would not perform police functions but would protect ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with Texas national guard patches were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and essential items. Trailers were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has escalated immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, especially near an immigration center in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city initiated legal action against the administration, seeking to block the military dispatch, asking a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on the city and state, calling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on Monday prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using municipal facilities as staging areas for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged the president of using military forces as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
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 direct command."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law restricts the army's involvement in enforcing domestic laws. However, the president has stated he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch active duty military in states that are unable to suppress an uprising or are defying national authority.
After beginning his new administration, Trump has dispatched or discussed sending military units to over ten cities, such as major metropolitan areas and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is essential to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Statistics shows that serious offenses nationwide has declined in recent years. In the city, for example, homicides were down nearly one-third to 278 through August, per police data.
New survey data published on that day found that most Americans oppose the sending of troops without an external threat.
