Trump Demands Imprisonment of Chicago Leader and Illinois Governor as National Guard Deploy in Metropolis
Former President Donald J. Trump on Wednesday called for the detainment of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of not safeguarding ICE agents.
"Chicago's Mayor belongs behind bars for endangering Immigration agents!" Trump posted on his platform early Wednesday. "Governor Pritzker too!"
The two leaders identify as the Democratic faction.
These remarks come alongside the deployment of state military personnel in the Windy City area under orders from the federal administration, despite strong objections from state officials such as the governor and mayor.
"This marks not the first instance where Trump has sought to have a Black man wrongfully arrested," Mayor Johnson stated on Wednesday. "I'm not going anywhere."
The governor responded via social platforms, stating: "I refuse to yield. Now Trump is calling for imprisonment of elected officials checking his power. What remains on the path to full-blown autocracy?"
By Wednesday morning, military troops from Texas had arrived at the Elwood training facility, an army base roughly 50 miles from the city, as the federal government advances with its aggressive urban crime policy and mass deportation efforts.
The president has labeled Chicago a "crime-ridden hellhole", even though official statistics indicate notable reductions in many offenses, such as murders.
On Wednesday, two hundred Texas National Guard members were scheduled to arrive to the Chicago area, with another 300 state military personnel readying for deployment, per reports. Authorities indicated the soldiers would avoid law enforcement duties but would secure federal immigration agents and their facilities.
Military personnel in combat attire with state guard insignia were observed at the US army reserve center in Elwood. Trucks labeled "Emergency Disaster Services" delivered sanitation facilities and essential items. Trailers were arranged in lines. Extra barriers was placed around the perimeter.
Aviation authorities imposed no-fly zones over the military base for safety concerns until early December.
Federal authorities has escalated deportation operations in the city in the past month, sparking protests, particularly near an immigration center in a Chicago suburb.
Earlier this week, Illinois and Chicago filed a lawsuit targeting the federal government, seeking to block the military dispatch, asking a court to stop what they call "the president's proclaimed 'War'" on Chicago and Illinois, calling it "unlawful and risky".
A court hearing on their lawsuit is scheduled for the next day.
Mayor Johnson also signed an directive on that day banning federal immigration agents and related personnel from using city-owned property as staging areas for deportation efforts.
The governor has accused the president of using troops as "staged tools" and "chess pieces".
At a news conference on the previous day, Pritzker said that Trump is attempting to "justify and make acceptable the presence of military personnel under his direct command."
The historic federal law limits the army's involvement in civilian law enforcement. Yet, the president has said he would be prepared to invoke the emergency powers, which allows a president to dispatch regular army in regions that are unable to suppress an insurrection or are resisting federal law.
After beginning his new administration, the president has sent or discussed sending military units to over ten urban centers, including major metropolitan areas and West Coast locations like Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles, claiming that the armed forces is necessary to fight violence and protect ICE officers.
Data shows that most violent crime across the US has declined in the past few years. In the city, for instance, murders were reduced nearly one-third to under three hundred through August, per police data.
A recent poll released on Wednesday revealed that the majority of US citizens oppose the sending of troops without an external threat.