Ex-President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader should be jailed for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials 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, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities including the governor and mayor.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on that day. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I will not yield. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the path to complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from Texas had reached the Elwood training facility, a military installation approximately 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the federal government pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite police data indicate significant drops in many offenses, including homicides.
That day, two hundred state guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with another 300 Illinois guard forces preparing to mobilize, per reports. Officials reportedly stated the troops would avoid police functions but would protect ICE officers and their facilities.
Soldiers in combat attire with Texas national guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and other supplies. Mobile units were set up in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed no-fly zones over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has escalated immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit targeting the federal government, attempting to halt the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on the city and state, calling it "unlawful and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has accused Trump of using military forces as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on the previous day, he said that Trump is attempting to "justify and normalize the deployment of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, the president has stated he would be willing to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in regions that are unable to put down an uprising or are defying national authority.
Since starting his second term, the president has sent or discussed deploying military units to over ten cities, including major metropolitan areas and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the military presence is necessary to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Data indicates that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in the past few years. In the city, for instance, murders were reduced 31% to 278 through late summer, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
