Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday called for the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor as well!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic party.
These remarks coincide with the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the current government, notwithstanding vehement protests from Illinois authorities including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its hardline urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has labeled Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", even though official statistics indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred Texas National Guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the region, with another 300 state military forces preparing to mobilize, per reports. Authorities indicated the troops would not perform police functions but would protect ICE officers and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with Texas national guard insignia were spotted at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered sanitation facilities and other supplies. Trailers were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered flight restrictions over the military base for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has escalated immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, triggering demonstrations, especially 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 "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an directive on Monday banning ICE officers and others from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has accused Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is attempting to "justify and normalize the deployment of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The historic federal law restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has said he would be willing to invoke the Insurrection Act, which allows a president to dispatch active duty military in states that are failing to suppress an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
Since starting his new administration, the president has sent or mentioned deploying troops to at least 10 cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the armed forces is necessary to combat crime and protect ICE officers.
Statistics shows that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in recent years. In the city, for example, murders were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through late summer, according to police data.
New survey data released on that day revealed that most Americans disapprove of the sending of troops without an foreign danger.
