Former President Donald Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on social media Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker as well!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the arrival of state military personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding strong objections from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I am staying put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I will not back down. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard troops from Texas had reached the Elwood training facility, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the federal government advances with its hardline urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite official statistics indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred state guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with another 300 state military personnel preparing to mobilize, per reports. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect ICE officers and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with Texas national guard insignia were spotted at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Trucks labeled "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Trailers were set up in lines. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered no-fly zones over the army reserve center for safety concerns until 6 December.
Federal authorities has escalated deportation operations in Chicago in the past month, triggering protests, especially near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit against the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and dangerous".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on Monday prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has accused the president of using military forces as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and normalize the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The historic federal law restricts the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. However, the president has said he would be willing to activate the Insurrection Act, which permits a commander-in-chief to dispatch active duty military in states that are unable to suppress an uprising or are defying national authority.
After beginning his new administration, the president has sent or discussed deploying troops to over ten cities, including major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is essential to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Statistics shows that most violent crime nationwide has declined in the past few years. In Chicago, for instance, homicides were reduced 31% to under three hundred through August, according to law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on Wednesday revealed that most Americans disapprove of the deployment of military forces without an external threat.
