Former President Donald Trump on midweek called for the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor should be jailed for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of state military personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the current government, despite vehement protests from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have a Black man unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I will not back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward full-blown autocracy?"
As of midweek, National Guard units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the federal government pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as murders.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel preparing to mobilize, according to sources. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would not perform law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard insignia were observed at the military facility in the town. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were arranged in rows. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has escalated deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, triggering protests, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit targeting the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is set for the next day.
The mayor also issued an executive order on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused Trump of using military forces as "political props" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on the previous day, he said that the president is trying to "justify and make acceptable the presence of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law limits the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has said he would be prepared to activate the emergency powers, which allows a president to send regular army in states that are unable to put down an uprising or are defying federal law.
Since starting his new administration, the president has dispatched or discussed deploying troops to over ten urban centers, including 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 ICE officers.
Statistics shows that serious offenses nationwide has declined in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, murders were down 31% to 278 through late summer, per law enforcement reports.
New survey data published on that day revealed that most Americans disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
