Former President Donald Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
These remarks coincide with the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Windy City area under orders from the current government, despite vehement protests from Illinois authorities such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to yield. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials resisting his authority. What's next on the path to complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, military units from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the federal government advances with its hardline crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", despite police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as homicides.
That day, 200 state guard members were expected to deploy to the Chicago area, with an additional three hundred state military forces preparing to mobilize, according to sources. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would not perform law enforcement duties but would protect federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard patches were spotted at the military facility in the town. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" dropped off sanitation facilities and other supplies. Mobile units were arranged in rows. Additional fencing was installed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in Chicago in recent weeks, sparking protests, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, state and city filed a lawsuit targeting the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they call "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on the city and state, calling it "illegal and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is scheduled for Thursday.
The mayor also signed an directive on that day prohibiting ICE officers and others from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
The governor has charged the president of using military forces as "staged tools" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on Tuesday, Pritzker said that the president is trying to "rationalize and make acceptable the presence of armed soldiers under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in enforcing domestic laws. However, the president has stated he would be prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act, which allows a commander-in-chief to send regular army in regions that are failing to suppress an uprising or are resisting national authority.
Since starting his second term, Trump has sent or discussed sending troops to at least 10 cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the military presence is essential to combat crime and defend ICE officers.
Statistics shows that serious offenses nationwide has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for instance, murders were reduced nearly one-third to 278 through late summer, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll released on that day found that most Americans oppose the sending of troops without an foreign danger.
