Former President Donald Trump on midweek called for the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of state military personnel in the Chicago region following directives from the current government, notwithstanding vehement protests from Illinois authorities such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the path to full-blown autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, military units from Texas had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, an army base roughly 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has labeled Chicago a "dangerous disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard forces preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Authorities indicated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers in combat attire with Texas national guard insignia were spotted at the military facility in the town. Trucks marked "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off sanitation facilities and essential items. Trailers were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the army reserve center for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking protests, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, state and city initiated legal action against the administration, seeking to block the military dispatch, urging a court to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and dangerous".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an executive order on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, he said that Trump is trying to "justify and normalize the presence of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has stated he would be prepared to activate the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in states that are failing to suppress an uprising or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his new administration, the president has dispatched or mentioned deploying troops to over ten cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the military presence is essential to fight violence and defend ICE officers.
Statistics shows that most violent crime across the US has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for instance, murders were down nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll released on that day revealed that most Americans disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
