Former President Donald J. Trump on midweek demanded the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor as well!"
The two leaders are members of the Democratic faction.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of National Guard troops in the Windy City area following directives from the federal administration, notwithstanding strong objections from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
The governor responded via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from Texas had reached the Elwood training facility, a military installation approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the federal government pushes forward with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", despite police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, two hundred Texas National Guard members were expected to deploy to the region, with an additional three hundred state military forces readying for deployment, according to sources. Authorities reportedly stated the soldiers would not perform law enforcement duties but would protect ICE officers and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard insignia were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were set up in rows. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities imposed flight restrictions over the army reserve center for safety concerns until 6 December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, sparking demonstrations, especially near an processing facility in Broadview.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action targeting the administration, seeking to block the military dispatch, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'Battle'" on the city and state, calling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also issued an executive order on Monday banning ICE officers and related personnel from using city-owned property as operation bases for enforcement actions.
The governor has accused the president of using military forces as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, he said that the president is trying to "rationalize and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. Yet, the president has stated he would be prepared to activate the emergency powers, which allows a president to dispatch active duty military in states that are failing to put down an uprising or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his new administration, the president has sent or mentioned deploying military units to at least 10 urban centers, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, arguing that the armed forces is essential to fight violence and protect immigration agents.
Data indicates that serious offenses across the US has decreased in the past few years. In Chicago, for example, murders were reduced nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the sending of military forces without an foreign danger.