Ex-President Donald Trump on midweek demanded the detainment of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of failing to protect federal immigration officers.
"The city's leader should be jailed for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker too!"
Both officials identify as the Democratic faction.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have a Black man unjustly detained," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going put."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Trump is now demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What remains on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood training facility, a military installation approximately 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the administration advances with its aggressive crime strategy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has labeled Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", even though police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, two hundred state guard members were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred state military forces preparing to mobilize, per reports. Officials indicated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with state guard patches were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" dropped off sanitation facilities and essential items. Trailers were set up in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered flight restrictions over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified deportation operations in Chicago in the past month, sparking protests, particularly near an immigration center in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city initiated legal action against the administration, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "justify and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old federal law limits the military's role in civilian law enforcement. Yet, Trump has said he would be prepared to activate the emergency powers, which permits a president to dispatch regular army in states that are unable to put down an uprising or are defying federal law.
Since starting his second term, the president has sent or discussed deploying military units to at least 10 urban centers, including major metropolitan areas and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the military presence is essential to fight violence and defend ICE officers.
Statistics indicates that serious offenses across the US has declined in recent years. In the city, for instance, murders were reduced nearly one-third to under three hundred through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
A recent poll released on Wednesday revealed that most Americans disapprove of the sending of troops without an external threat.
