Ex-President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded the detainment of Chicago 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 posted on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements come alongside the arrival of state military personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the current government, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is demanding arrests of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the road toward full-blown autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, National Guard units from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 50 miles from Chicago, as the administration advances with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite police data indicate significant drops in many offenses, including murders.
That day, 200 state guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard forces preparing to mobilize, per reports. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard patches were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were set up in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed no-fly zones over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in the city in the past month, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, state and city initiated legal action against the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an directive on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is attempting to "justify and make acceptable the presence of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has said he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch active duty military in regions that are failing to put down an uprising or are resisting national authority.
After beginning his new administration, Trump has dispatched or mentioned deploying troops to over ten cities, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and West Coast locations like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the military presence is essential to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that most violent crime across the US has declined in recent years. In the city, for example, murders were reduced 31% to under three hundred through August, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on Wednesday found that most Americans disapprove of the deployment of military forces without an foreign danger.
