Ex-President Donald J. Trump on midweek demanded the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"Chicago's Mayor should be jailed for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump posted on social media Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks coincide with the arrival of National Guard troops in the Chicago region following directives from the current government, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities such as the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
The governor responded via online channels, declaring: "I will not yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the path to full-blown autocracy?"
As of midweek, military troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as homicides.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military forces preparing to mobilize, per reports. Authorities reportedly stated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Trucks marked "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were set up in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit targeting the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and dangerous".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is scheduled for the next day.
The mayor also issued an executive order on Monday prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged the president of using troops as "political props" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on the previous day, he said that Trump is trying to "justify and make acceptable the presence of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Yet, the president has said he would be willing to invoke the Insurrection Act, which permits a president to dispatch regular army in regions that are failing to put down an uprising or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his new administration, the president has sent or discussed sending troops to at least 10 cities, such as major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is necessary to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Statistics shows that most violent crime across the US has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, homicides were down nearly one-third to 278 through August, per law enforcement reports.
New survey data released on that day found that most Americans disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
