President Trump on Wednesday called for Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D) to be jailed as the two leaders push back on the Trump administration’s crime crackdown and immigration enforcement raids on the Windy City.
“Chicago Mayor should be in jail for failing to protect [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] Officers!” Trump posted to Truth Social. “Governor Pritzker also!”
The president’s post comes as his administration has sought to mobilize National Guard troops and has surged federal immigration officers into the city despite objections from Pritzker and Johnson.
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“I will not back down. Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power. What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?” Pritzker posted on X.
“This is not the first time Trump has tried to have a Black man unjustly arrested. I’m not going anywhere,” Johnson posted on X in response to Trump.
The state of Illinois and the city of Chicago on Monday sued to block Trump’s deployment of National Guard members to the city.
The Department of Defense over the weekend federalized up to 300 members of the Illinois National Guard, despite Pritzker’s warnings.
Trump also directed 400 federalized Texas National Guard members to be sent to Chicago, Portland, Ore., and potentially other locations “where needed,” according to a memorandum filed Sunday in Oregon’s lawsuit fighting the deployment efforts there.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in early September launched “Operation Midway Blitz” to crack down on illegal immigrants in Chicago. Since then, ICE officials have clashed with protesters and journalists, particularly outside a migrant holding facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview.
DHS in late September requested assistance protecting ICE facilities in Illinois amid the clashes.
Trump’s latest post marks an escalation of his criticisms of Pritzker and Johnson, who the president has for weeks railed against as incompetent.
Critics have also raised alarms that Trump may try to jail his opponents, and the Justice Department has already brought charges against former FBI Director James Comey despite skepticism from experts about the case.
Updated at 10:36 a.m. EDT