Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor should be jailed for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic faction.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from Illinois authorities including the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I am staying anywhere."
The governor responded via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward full-blown autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard units from Texas had reached the Elwood training facility, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", despite official statistics indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, two hundred state guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the region, with another 300 Illinois guard forces readying for deployment, according to reports. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would not perform law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard insignia were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles marked "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and other supplies. Trailers were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities imposed flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has escalated deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the federal government, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, asking a federal judge to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on the city and state, calling it "illegal and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their case is scheduled for the next day.
The mayor also issued an executive order on Monday prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as staging areas for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused Trump of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on the previous day, he said that the president is trying to "justify and normalize the presence of military personnel under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law limits the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. However, Trump has stated he would be willing to activate the emergency powers, which permits a president to send active duty military in regions that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are defying national authority.
Since starting his second term, Trump has sent or mentioned deploying military units to over ten cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the armed forces is essential to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data indicates that most violent crime across the US has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for example, murders were down nearly one-third to 278 through August, per police data.
New survey data published on Wednesday found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
