Ex-President Donald Trump on midweek called for the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for endangering ICE Officers!" Trump posted on his platform Wednesday morning. "The Illinois governor as well!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
Trump's statements come alongside the arrival of state military troops in the Chicago region under orders from the federal administration, despite vehement protests from state officials such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This marks yet another attempt where Trump attempted to have an African American leader unjustly detained," Johnson responded on that day. "I'm not going anywhere."
Pritzker also replied via social platforms, declaring: "I refuse to back down. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the road toward complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 80 kilometers from the city, as the administration advances with its aggressive crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", even though police data indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as homicides.
On Wednesday, 200 Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the region, with an additional three hundred Illinois guard personnel preparing to mobilize, per sources. Authorities indicated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were spotted at the military facility in the town. Trucks marked "Disaster Relief" dropped off portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were set up in rows. Extra barriers was installed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities ordered flight restrictions over the military base for security reasons until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in Chicago in the past month, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, state and city initiated legal action targeting the administration, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "the president's proclaimed 'Battle'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "illegal and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is set for Thursday.
The mayor also signed an executive order on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using city-owned property as operation bases for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused Trump of using military forces as "political props" and "pawns".
At a news conference on Tuesday, Pritzker 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 enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has said he would be willing to activate the emergency powers, which permits a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in regions that are unable to suppress an uprising or are defying national authority.
Since starting his second term, Trump has dispatched or discussed sending military units to at least 10 cities, including Baltimore; Washington DC; New Orleans and California cities like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the military presence is necessary to fight violence and protect ICE officers.
Data indicates that serious offenses across the US has declined in recent years. In Chicago, for instance, homicides were down 31% to 278 through August, per law enforcement reports.
A recent poll published on that day found that the majority of US citizens disapprove of the deployment of troops without an external threat.
