Former President Donald J. Trump on midweek demanded the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker as well!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements coincide with the arrival of state military troops in the Chicago region under orders from the current government, notwithstanding strong objections from state officials including the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on that day. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I will not yield. Now Trump is demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 50 miles from the city, as the federal government advances with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though official statistics indicate significant drops in most criminal activities, including murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel readying for deployment, per reports. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would not perform law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in the town. Trucks marked "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the compound.
Aviation authorities imposed no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
On Monday, state and city filed a lawsuit targeting the administration, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their case is set for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on Monday prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has accused the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is trying to "rationalize and normalize the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, the president has said he would be willing to invoke the Insurrection Act, which permits a commander-in-chief to send regular army in states that are unable to put down an insurrection or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his second term, Trump has sent or mentioned sending military units to at least 10 urban centers, such as major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is essential to fight violence and protect immigration agents.
Statistics indicates that most violent crime across the US has declined in the past few years. In the city, for example, murders were reduced nearly one-third to 278 through August, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
