Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday demanded the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker too!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the arrival of National Guard troops in the Chicago region following directives from the current government, notwithstanding vehement protests from Illinois authorities including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
The governor responded via online channels, declaring: "I will not back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What's next on the path to complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the administration advances with its hardline crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
That day, 200 Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred state military forces readying for deployment, according to reports. Authorities indicated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with Texas national guard insignia were observed at the US army reserve center in the town. Trucks marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the army reserve center for security reasons until 6 December.
The administration has escalated deportation operations in Chicago in recent weeks, triggering protests, especially near an immigration center in Broadview.
On Monday, state and city filed a lawsuit against the federal government, seeking to block the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, labeling it "unlawful and dangerous".
Legal proceedings on their case is scheduled for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day prohibiting federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
The governor has charged Trump of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, he said that the president is attempting to "justify and normalize the deployment of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act restricts the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. However, Trump has stated he would be willing to invoke the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in regions that are failing to put down an insurrection or are defying federal law.
Since starting his second term, Trump has dispatched or discussed sending military units to over ten urban centers, such as major metropolitan areas and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is necessary to combat crime and defend ICE officers.
Statistics shows that most violent crime across the US has declined in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, homicides were reduced nearly one-third to 278 through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
New survey data published on Wednesday found that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
