Former President Donald J. Trump on midweek demanded the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader should be jailed for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
Trump's statements come alongside the deployment of National Guard troops in the Windy City area following directives from the federal administration, notwithstanding strong objections from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
The governor responded via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to yield. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials resisting his authority. What's next on the path to full-blown autocracy?"
As of midweek, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government pushes forward with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though official statistics indicate significant drops in many offenses, such as murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military forces readying for deployment, per sources. Officials indicated the soldiers would not perform law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Soldiers in combat attire with state guard patches were spotted at the military facility in the town. Vehicles marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and essential items. Mobile units were set up in lines. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed flight restrictions over the military base for security reasons until early December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, state and city filed a lawsuit against the administration, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "illegal and dangerous".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is set for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on Monday prohibiting ICE officers and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has accused Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is attempting to "justify and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has said he would be willing to activate the emergency powers, which permits a president to send regular army in states that are unable to suppress an uprising or are resisting national authority.
After beginning his second term, the president has dispatched or discussed deploying troops to over ten urban centers, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the armed forces is essential to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Data indicates that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in recent years. In the city, for instance, homicides were reduced 31% to under three hundred through August, according to police data.
New survey data published on Wednesday found that most Americans oppose the sending of military forces without an external threat.
