Ex-President Donald Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements come alongside the arrival of National Guard personnel in the Windy City area following directives from the federal administration, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump has sought to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I am staying anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I will not yield. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What's next on the path to complete autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 50 miles from the city, as the administration pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as murders.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard members were expected to deploy to the region, with an additional three hundred state military personnel preparing to mobilize, per reports. Officials reportedly stated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Soldiers in combat attire with state guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered sanitation facilities and essential items. Trailers were set up in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the compound.
Aviation authorities imposed flight restrictions over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
Federal authorities has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on the city and state, labeling it "illegal and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on Monday banning federal immigration agents and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has charged the president of using military forces as "political props" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on the previous day, he said that Trump is attempting to "justify and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic federal law restricts the military's role in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has said he would be willing to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a president to send regular army in regions that are failing to suppress an uprising or are defying national authority.
Since starting his new administration, Trump has sent or mentioned deploying military units to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Data indicates that serious offenses across the US has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for instance, murders were down 31% to 278 through August, per police data.
A recent poll released on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens oppose the sending of military forces without an external threat.
