Ex-President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the arrival of National Guard troops in the Windy City area under orders from the current government, despite strong objections from state officials including the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
The governor responded via online channels, stating: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is demanding arrests of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the road toward full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard units from Texas had reached the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 50 miles from the city, as the administration advances with its hardline crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though official statistics indicate significant drops in many offenses, including murders.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel preparing to mobilize, according to sources. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would not perform police functions but would protect ICE officers and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard insignia were spotted at the military facility in the town. Trucks labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were set up in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered flight restrictions over the military base for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, triggering demonstrations, especially near an immigration center in Broadview.
On Monday, state and city filed a lawsuit against the federal government, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on the city and state, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is set for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an executive order on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using city-owned property as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has charged Trump of using military forces as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is attempting to "justify 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. Yet, Trump has said he would be willing to invoke the emergency powers, which permits a commander-in-chief to dispatch active duty military in states that are failing to suppress an uprising or are defying federal law.
Since starting his second term, Trump has sent or discussed deploying troops to at least 10 cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the military presence is necessary to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Data indicates that serious offenses nationwide has decreased 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 that day revealed that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
