Former President Donald J. Trump on midweek demanded the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker as well!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic faction.
These remarks coincide with the arrival of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region following directives from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I will not back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What remains on the path to complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood training facility, a military installation approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its hardline crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has labeled Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite police data indicate significant drops in most criminal activities, such as murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 Illinois guard forces readying for deployment, according to reports. Officials indicated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and government buildings.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with state guard patches were spotted at the US army reserve center in the town. Trucks marked "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were set up in lines. Additional fencing was placed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, triggering protests, particularly near an immigration center in Broadview.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action against the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, asking a federal judge to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
Legal proceedings on their case is set for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an executive order on Monday banning ICE officers and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is attempting to "justify and normalize the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The historic federal law limits the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has stated he would be willing to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in states that are unable to suppress an uprising or are defying national authority.
After beginning his second term, the president has sent or discussed sending troops to over ten urban centers, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the military presence is necessary to fight violence and defend immigration agents.
Data indicates that most violent crime across the US has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, murders were reduced nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per police data.
New survey data published on Wednesday found that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of military forces without an foreign danger.
