US President Donald Trump has called for the imprisonment of Chicago mayor Brandon Johnson and Illinois governor JB Pritzker, accusing them of failing to protect federal immigration officers. The remarks, posted on Trump’s social media platform Truth Social, come amid ongoing political tensions over immigration enforcement and the deployment of federal troops in Democratic-led cities.“Chicago Mayor should be in jail for failing to protect ICE Officers! Governor Pritzker also!” Trump wrote, referring to US immigration and customs enforcement personnel operating in the city.
Trump’s comments follow a recent executive order by Johnson that designates city property as an “ICE Free Zone,” restricting federal immigration agents from using municipal facilities. The move was seen as a direct pushback against federal immigration operations within the city.Trump’s statement adds to a broader dispute over the use of the national guard in Democrat-led states. Hundreds of Texas national guard soldiers have reportedly assembled at a military facility near Chicago, despite vocal opposition from state leadership, including Johnson and Pritzker.The administration has not accused either Johnson or Pritzker of any wrongdoing legally. Both leaders have opposed Trump’s immigration policies and criticized what they see as the federal government’s overreach. Pritzker has previously accused Trump of trying to provoke unrest as a means to justify military deployments.Meanwhile, a Reuters/Ipsos poll released Wednesday shows that most Americans disapprove of sending troops to US cities without a clear external threat. Despite this, Trump defended the deployments, stating on social media, “My goal is very simple. STOP CRIME IN AMERICA!”The department of justice has claimed that the situation in some cities amounts to “domestic terrorism.” “What we have going on right now is literally domestic terrorism in Chicago,” said deputy attorney general Todd Blanche during an appearance on Fox News.A federal court has allowed the deployment in Illinois to continue for now, while a separate ruling has temporarily blocked a similar move in Portland, Oregon. Trump has hinted at invoking the insurrection act – last used during the 1992 Los Angeles riots – to bypass court challenges if necessary.Trump has previously called for jailing political opponents, but this marks one of the few times he has done so while also pushing forward a controversial military deployment strategy.(With inputs from Reuters)