Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the arrival of National Guard troops in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I am staying anywhere."
The governor responded via social platforms, declaring: "I will not back down. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What remains on the path to complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, military troops from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its hardline urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including homicides.
That day, 200 state guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military personnel preparing to mobilize, per sources. Authorities indicated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with state guard insignia were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Trucks labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Trailers were set up in lines. Extra barriers was placed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the military base for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified deportation operations in the city in the past month, sparking protests, especially near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the federal government, attempting to halt the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "illegal and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an directive on that day banning federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has accused the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, he said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and make acceptable the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has stated he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a president to dispatch active duty military in states that are unable to suppress an uprising or are defying national authority.
Since starting his new administration, Trump has sent or discussed deploying troops to over ten cities, such as major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Statistics shows that serious offenses across the US has declined in the past few years. In the city, for example, homicides were down 31% to 278 through August, according to police data.
A recent poll released on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
