Ex-President Donald Trump on Wednesday called for the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump posted on his platform early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the arrival of state military troops in the Windy City area following directives from the current government, despite strong objections from Illinois authorities such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
The governor responded via online channels, declaring: "I will not yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials resisting his authority. What remains on the path to full-blown autocracy?"
As of midweek, military units from Texas had reached the Elwood army reserve center, an army base approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its hardline crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though police data indicate significant drops in most criminal activities, such as murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred state guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 Illinois guard personnel readying for deployment, per reports. Officials reportedly stated the troops would not perform law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard insignia were spotted at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" dropped off sanitation facilities and essential items. Mobile units were set up in rows. Additional fencing was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed no-fly zones over the military base for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, sparking protests, especially near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, state and city filed a lawsuit against the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, asking a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on the city and state, labeling it "illegal and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their case is scheduled for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also issued an directive on that day banning federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that Trump is trying to "justify and make acceptable the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act limits the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has stated he would be willing to activate the emergency powers, which allows a president to dispatch active duty military in regions that are failing to suppress an insurrection or are defying federal law.
Since starting his new administration, the president has dispatched or mentioned deploying troops to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is essential to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses nationwide has decreased in recent years. In the city, for instance, homicides were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per police data.
A recent poll published on that day revealed that the majority of US citizens oppose the sending of troops without an foreign danger.
