Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson on Saturday shot back at President Donald Trump’s potential plans to temporarily federalize the city, calling on citizens to “protect Chicago from Donald Trump.”

Johnson was responding to one of Trump’s Truth Social posts, which said he “loves the smell of deportations in the morning…” and “Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR.”

A photo accompanying Trump’s post showed him photoshopped into the city with fire and military helicopters overtaking the iconic Chicago skyline. 

A pedestrian walks past security fencing around the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago, Illinois, US, on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker warned residents that he expected federal immigration agents to step up activity in the third-largest US city this weekend. (Taylor Glascock/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The conflict comes after Trump shared there would be a federal surge in the city, similar to the action in Washington, D.C., which could include National Guard troops and immigration authorities.

Democratic leaders, including Johnson and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, have aggressively pushed back on the idea.

Chicago Alderman Raymond Lopez, a Democrat, told Fox News Channel’s “Fox Report” Sunday he thinks a federal surge would be “helpful.”

“Even though we see our statistics are trending in the right direction, who would argue against making them trend even further, even lower, meaning less victims on the street,” Lopez said. “It’s absolutely asinine to me hear my Democratic colleagues say that we don’t want more help.”

CATA did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Cameron Arcand contributed to this report.