Ex-President Donald Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks come alongside the arrival of National Guard troops in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, despite strong objections from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, stating: "I refuse to yield. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the road toward complete authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation approximately 50 miles from Chicago, as the administration pushes forward with its hardline urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", despite police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including homicides.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military forces preparing to mobilize, according to sources. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would protect ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with Texas national guard patches were observed at the military facility in the town. Vehicles labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Trailers were arranged in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until 6 December.
The administration has escalated deportation operations in the city in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, especially near an processing facility in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit targeting the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, asking a court to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also signed an directive on that day prohibiting ICE officers and others from using municipal facilities as staging areas for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is attempting to "rationalize and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic federal law limits the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, the president has said he would be prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act, which permits a commander-in-chief to dispatch regular army in states that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are defying national authority.
Since starting his new administration, the president has dispatched or discussed deploying military units to over ten urban centers, including major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is essential to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Statistics indicates that most violent crime nationwide has decreased in recent years. In the city, for example, homicides were down 31% to under three hundred through late summer, per police data.
New survey data published on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens oppose the deployment of troops without an foreign danger.
