Former President Donald Trump on midweek demanded the incarceration of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, alleging them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"The city's leader belongs behind bars for failing to secure ICE Officers!" Trump wrote on social media early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic party.
Trump's statements coincide with the deployment of National Guard personnel in the Chicago region following directives from the current government, despite vehement protests from state officials such as Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump has sought to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on that day. "I am staying anywhere."
The governor responded via online channels, stating: "I will not yield. Trump is now calling for imprisonment of democratically chosen representatives resisting his authority. What's next on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?"
As of midweek, military units from the Lone Star State had reached the Elwood army reserve center, an army base approximately 80 kilometers from the city, as the federal government advances with its hardline crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has called Chicago a "crime-ridden disaster zone", despite official statistics indicate notable reductions in many offenses, including murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred state guard troops were expected to deploy to the region, with another 300 Illinois guard forces preparing to mobilize, according to sources. Authorities indicated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and government buildings.
Soldiers wearing uniforms with state guard patches were observed at the military facility in Elwood. Trucks marked "Disaster Relief" delivered portable toilets and other supplies. Mobile units were arranged in rows. Additional fencing was placed around the compound.
Aviation authorities imposed flight restrictions over the military base for safety concerns until 6 December.
Federal authorities has intensified immigration enforcement in the city in the past month, triggering demonstrations, particularly near an processing facility in Broadview.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action targeting the federal government, seeking to block the National Guard deployment, urging a court to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on the city and state, labeling it "unlawful and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is set for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on Monday prohibiting federal immigration agents and related personnel from using municipal facilities as operation bases for enforcement actions.
The governor has charged the president of using troops as "political props" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on Tuesday, he said that Trump is trying to "justify and normalize the presence of military personnel under his personal authority."
The historic 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 allows a president to dispatch active duty military in regions that are failing to put down an uprising or are defying national authority.
Since starting his new administration, Trump has sent or mentioned deploying military units to at least 10 urban centers, such as major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, arguing that the military presence is necessary to fight violence and protect immigration agents.
Statistics shows that serious offenses nationwide has declined in recent years. In the city, for instance, homicides were down nearly one-third to 278 through August, according to police data.
A recent poll released on Wednesday found that most Americans oppose the deployment of military forces without an external threat.
