Ex-President Donald J. Trump on midweek called for the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump posted on social media early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker too!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of National Guard troops in the Windy City area under orders from the current government, despite vehement protests from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump has sought to have an African American leader wrongfully arrested," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What's next on the path to complete authoritarianism?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from Texas had reached the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 80 kilometers from Chicago, as the administration advances with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has called Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though police data indicate significant drops in most criminal activities, including murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel readying for deployment, according to sources. Authorities indicated the soldiers would avoid police functions but would protect ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with state guard insignia were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were set up in lines. Additional fencing was installed around the compound.
Aviation authorities ordered no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until 6 December.
The administration has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in recent weeks, sparking protests, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action targeting the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, asking a court to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and risky".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is scheduled for the next day.
The mayor also issued an directive on Monday prohibiting ICE officers and others from using municipal facilities as operation bases for deportation efforts.
Pritzker has charged Trump of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is attempting to "rationalize and make acceptable the deployment of military personnel under his personal authority."
The nearly 150-year-old Posse Comitatus Act restricts the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. Yet, the president has stated he would be willing to activate the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in states that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his second term, Trump has dispatched or mentioned sending troops to at least 10 cities, including major metropolitan areas and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the armed forces is essential to combat crime and protect immigration agents.
Data indicates that most violent crime nationwide has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for instance, homicides were down nearly one-third to 278 through late summer, according to law enforcement reports.
New survey data published on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the sending of military forces without an external threat.
