Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"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.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region following directives from the federal administration, notwithstanding strong objections from state officials including the governor and mayor.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the path to complete autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from Texas had reached the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", even though official statistics indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military personnel preparing to mobilize, per sources. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would avoid police functions but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in the town. Vehicles marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until early December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, sparking demonstrations, especially near an immigration center in Broadview.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action against the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, asking a federal judge to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on the city and state, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their case is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day banning ICE officers and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused the president of using military forces as "political props" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is trying to "justify and normalize the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Yet, the president has said he would be willing to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to send regular army in states that are failing to put down an uprising or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his second term, the president has sent or mentioned sending troops to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the military presence is necessary to fight violence and protect ICE officers.
Statistics shows that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in the past few years. In the city, for example, homicides were reduced nearly one-third to under three hundred through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
New survey data published on that day found that most Americans disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
