Former President Donald Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding federal immigration officers.
"Chicago's Mayor should be jailed for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump posted on social media Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor as well!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Windy City area following directives from the current government, despite vehement protests from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This represents yet another attempt where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via online channels, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is demanding arrests of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What remains on the path to complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, military troops from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the federal government advances with its aggressive urban crime policy and immigration enforcement operations.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", despite police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including murders.
That day, two hundred Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard forces readying for deployment, per reports. Officials reportedly stated the soldiers would avoid police functions but would protect ICE officers and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were spotted at the US army reserve center in the town. Trucks labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" delivered sanitation facilities and essential items. Mobile units were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was installed around the compound.
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed flight restrictions over the military base for safety concerns until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in Chicago in recent weeks, triggering demonstrations, especially near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit against the federal government, attempting to halt the military dispatch, asking a court to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on the city and state, labeling it "unlawful and risky".
Legal proceedings on their lawsuit is set for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an directive on that day prohibiting ICE officers and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has accused Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on the previous day, he said that the president is trying to "rationalize and normalize the presence of armed soldiers under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. However, Trump has stated he would be prepared to invoke the emergency powers, which permits a president to send active duty military in regions that are unable to suppress an uprising or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his second term, the president has sent or discussed sending troops to over ten urban centers, such as Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to fight violence and defend ICE officers.
Data indicates that serious offenses nationwide has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for example, murders were down nearly one-third to 278 through late summer, per law enforcement reports.
New survey data released on Wednesday revealed that most Americans disapprove of the deployment of military forces without an external threat.
