Former President Donald J. Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Chicago 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 ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker as well!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic party.
Trump's statements come alongside the arrival of National Guard troops in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I will not yield. Now Trump is demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What's next on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 50 miles from Chicago, as the administration pushes forward with its hardline urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though official statistics indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, including homicides.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with another 300 state military personnel readying for deployment, according to sources. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would not perform police functions but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Trucks labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Trailers were set up in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, triggering protests, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action against the administration, attempting to halt the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for the next day.
The mayor also signed an executive order on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has charged the president of using military forces as "political props" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "justify and make acceptable the presence of military personnel under his personal authority."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has stated he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which permits a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in states that are unable to put down an uprising or are resisting national authority.
After beginning his second term, Trump has sent or discussed sending military units to over ten urban centers, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is necessary to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Statistics shows that serious offenses across the US has decreased in recent years. In Chicago, for example, murders were down 31% to 278 through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
A recent poll released on that day revealed that the majority of US citizens oppose the sending of military forces without an foreign danger.
