Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday called for the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements coincide with the arrival of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region following directives from the current government, despite strong objections from Illinois authorities including the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump attempted to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I will not yield. Now Trump is demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What's next on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood training facility, an army base approximately 50 miles from the city, as the federal government pushes forward with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", despite police data indicate significant drops in many offenses, including homicides.
On Wednesday, two hundred Texas National Guard members were expected to deploy to the region, with an additional three hundred state military forces preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Officials indicated the troops would avoid 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 Elwood. Vehicles marked "Emergency Disaster Services" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed no-fly zones over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in the past month, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action targeting the federal government, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is set for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an directive on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as staging areas for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, he said that the president is trying to "justify and normalize the deployment of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has said he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in states that are unable to put down an insurrection or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his new administration, the president has sent or mentioned deploying military units to at least 10 urban centers, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is necessary to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Statistics shows that most violent crime nationwide has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for example, homicides were reduced 31% to under three hundred through August, according to police data.
New survey data published on that day revealed that most Americans disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
