Ex-President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader should be jailed for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of state military troops in the Chicago region following directives from the current government, despite strong objections from state officials such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I will not back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials resisting his authority. What's next on the path to complete autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, a military installation approximately 50 miles from the city, as the federal government pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with another 300 Illinois guard personnel preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with Texas national guard patches were spotted at the US army reserve center in the town. Vehicles marked "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the compound.
Aviation authorities imposed flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until early December.
Federal authorities has escalated deportation operations in Chicago in the past month, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, state and city filed a lawsuit against the administration, attempting to halt the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day banning ICE officers and others from using city-owned property as staging areas for enforcement actions.
The governor has charged Trump of using military forces as "staged tools" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, he said that the president is attempting to "rationalize and normalize the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in civilian law enforcement. However, the president has said he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to send regular army in states that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
Since starting his new administration, Trump has dispatched or mentioned sending troops to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is essential to fight violence and defend ICE officers.
Statistics shows that most violent crime across the US has declined in recent years. In the city, for example, murders were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through late summer, per law enforcement reports.
New survey data released on Wednesday revealed that most Americans oppose the sending of military forces without an external threat.
