Trump Demands Jailing of Windy City Leader and State Executive as Military Forces Deploy in City
Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday called for the incarceration of Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect ICE agents.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for failing to secure Immigration agents!" Trump wrote on his platform early Wednesday. "The Illinois governor too!"
Both officials are members of the Democratic faction.
These remarks come alongside the arrival of state military troops in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, notwithstanding vehement protests from state officials including Pritzker and Johnson.
"This represents not the first instance where Trump attempted to have a Black man unjustly detained," Johnson responded on Wednesday. "I am staying put."
The governor responded via social platforms, declaring: "I will not yield. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of democratically chosen representatives checking his power. What's next on the road toward complete autocracy?"
As of midweek, National Guard troops from the Lone Star State had arrived at the Elwood army reserve center, a military installation roughly 50 miles from Chicago, as the federal government pushes forward with its hardline crime strategy and mass deportation efforts.
Trump has called Chicago a "dangerous hellhole", despite police data indicate notable reductions in most criminal activities, such as murders.
That day, two hundred state guard troops were scheduled to arrive to the region, with another 300 state military forces preparing to mobilize, according to reports. Authorities reportedly stated the troops would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure ICE officers and their facilities.
Military personnel wearing uniforms with Texas national guard patches were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Vehicles labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" delivered portable toilets and essential items. Trailers were set up in lines. Additional fencing was placed around the perimeter.
The Federal Aviation Administration ordered no-fly zones over the army reserve center for security reasons until early December.
The administration has escalated deportation operations in the city in recent weeks, sparking demonstrations, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
On Monday, Illinois and Chicago initiated legal action targeting the federal government, attempting to halt the National Guard deployment, urging a federal judge to stop what they describe as "Trump's long-declared 'War'" on the city and state, calling it "illegal and dangerous".
A court hearing on their case is scheduled for Thursday.
Mayor Johnson also issued an executive order on Monday banning federal immigration agents and others from using municipal facilities as staging areas for enforcement actions.
Pritzker has accused the president of using troops as "political props" and "pawns".
During a press briefing on the previous day, Pritzker said that the president is trying to "justify and normalize the deployment of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic Posse Comitatus Act limits the military's role in enforcing domestic laws. Yet, Trump has stated he would be prepared to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a commander-in-chief to send active duty military in regions that are failing to suppress an insurrection or are defying federal law.
Since starting his second term, Trump has dispatched or discussed sending troops to at least 10 cities, including major metropolitan areas and California cities like Bay Area and Southern California municipalities, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to combat crime and defend immigration agents.
Data shows that serious offenses across the US has declined in the past few years. In the city, for instance, homicides were reduced nearly one-third to 278 through late summer, per law enforcement reports.
New survey data published on Wednesday revealed that most Americans oppose the sending of military forces without an external threat.