Ex-President Donald J. Trump on midweek demanded the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader should be jailed for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic party.
Trump's statements come alongside the deployment of state military troops in the Chicago region following directives from the federal administration, despite strong objections from Illinois authorities such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What remains on the road toward complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, a military installation roughly 50 miles from the city, as the administration advances with its hardline urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, including murders.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with another 300 state military forces preparing to mobilize, according to sources. Authorities reportedly stated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with state guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in the town. Vehicles marked "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were arranged in rows. Additional fencing was placed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed flight restrictions over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has escalated immigration enforcement in Chicago in recent weeks, triggering protests, particularly near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, state and city initiated legal action against the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their case is set for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on Monday prohibiting ICE officers and others from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
The governor has charged Trump of using military forces as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and normalize the presence of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act limits the army's involvement in enforcing domestic laws. However, Trump has said he would be willing to activate the emergency powers, which permits a president to dispatch active duty military in states that are failing to put down an uprising or are defying national authority.
After beginning his new administration, the president has dispatched or mentioned sending troops to over ten cities, including major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the armed forces is essential to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Data indicates that most violent crime nationwide has decreased in the past few years. In the city, for instance, homicides were reduced nearly one-third to 278 through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
