Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor too!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic party.
Trump's statements come alongside the deployment of state military troops in the Windy City area following directives from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials including the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on that day. "I'm not going put."
The governor responded via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of elected officials resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, a military installation roughly 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as murders.
That day, 200 state guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred state military forces readying for deployment, according to reports. Officials indicated the soldiers would avoid police functions 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 Elwood. Trucks labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Mobile units were arranged in rows. Additional fencing was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities imposed no-fly zones over the military base for security reasons until early December.
Federal authorities has escalated immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit targeting the administration, attempting to halt the military dispatch, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on the city and state, labeling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their case is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on the previous day, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "justify and normalize the presence of military personnel under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has stated he would be prepared to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a president to dispatch active duty military in regions that are unable to put down an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
Since starting his new administration, the president has sent or discussed sending military units to at least 10 cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that most violent crime across the US has decreased in recent years. In Chicago, for example, homicides were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, according to law enforcement reports.
New survey data published on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of military forces without an external threat.
