Democratic elected officials in Chicago responded Saturday after President Donald Trump again appeared to threaten to send in troops for a widespread immigration and crime crackdown.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr. Trump shared a screenshot that reads "'I love the smell of deportations in the morning ...' Chicago about to find out why it's called the Department of WAR." The AI-generated image appears to parody the movie "Apocalypse Now." 

In a post on X, Gov. JB Pritzker accused Trump of "threatening to go to war with an American city."

"This is not a joke. This is not normal," Pritzker wrote. "Donald Trump isn't a strongman, he's a scared man. Illinois won't be intimidated by a wannabe dictator."

Mayor Brandon Johnson also condemned the president's latest threat in his own post on X.

"The President's threats are beneath the honor of our nation, but the reality is that he wants to occupy our city and break our Constitution," Johnson wrote. "We must defend our democracy from this authoritarianism by protecting each other and protecting Chicago from Donald Trump."

Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law professor Paul Gowder, an expert in the rule of U.S. law, said the Constitution defines one crime – treason – and the president's Truth Social post about Chicago could potentially rise to the level of treason.

"The first thing that the treason clause says about that crime is that it's constituted by levying war against the United States. I don't understand how we can interpret that threat as anything other than a threat to levy war against a city in the United States," he said. "The picture of an American city in flames with the statement that Chicagoans are going to see why it's called the Department of War is a quite clear implication that it's a threat to wage war against the city of Chicago."

Hundreds of people flooded Grant Park outside the Taste of Chicago for a protest Sunday over the immigration crackdown in the wake of President Trump's comments.

People also gathered Saturday outside Naval Station Great Lakes in Lake County — an immigration operation staging area. According to an internal document obtained by CBS News, roughly 250 federal agents and 140 vehicles are to be set up at the base for 30 days.

On Sunday, some Black elected officials planned to speak out on the possible presence of the National Guard in Chicago, and how they think the community should respond.

Mexican Independence Day celebrations were also set to continue Sunday with a large parade planned for downtown Aurora, Illinois.

Mexican Independence Day Parade carries on in Pilsen despite fears of ICE crackdown  

The president's latest threat came as the Pilsen neighborhood celebrated Mexican Independence Day at the community's 24th annual parade. An estimated 3,000 people lined 18th Street for the festivities.

"While there were concerns, I think people came out in full force to support their culture and their heritage," said Eberado Ruiz, who lives along the parade route.

Olga and William Cook attended the parade for the first time, despite concerns about the Trump administration's planned immigration enforcement operation.

"It is a concern every day, going out the house," Olga said. "Our community is very strong, and we believe that we're going to overcome these issues."

Speaking at the parade, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) called the president's latest social media attack on Chicago "disgusting."

"To suggest that the troops are coming into Chicago or that the Department of War is going to be engaged is an embarrassment," Durbin said. "This is a peace-loving community trying to do their best to make a living and raise a family. For the president to come out with these threatening words is disgusting."

U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Illinois) called the president's latest threat "a virtual act of war against his own people."

"It's really the act of a tyrant. It's a scary time," he said.

U.S. Rep. Jesus "Chuy" Garcia (D-Illinois) called Mr. Trump's post "despicable" and "unpresidential."

"It's why the world looks at us in chagrin. Those are not the ways that a president should express himself," he said. "It's despicable, it's unfortunate, but we resolve to continue to fight to protect the Constitution to ensure due process and that families are not ripped apart by this president's policies."

Saturday's parade was the first of many Latino celebrations held in Chicago marking Mexican Independence Day this month. While some of those festivities have been postponed or canceled out of concern for the looming immigration crackdown, many elected leaders have urged the Latino community not to give in to fear.

"What I have found in traveling through the neighborhoods in the last few days in Chicago, the Hispanic neighborhoods, is there is a genuine fear of what President Trump is going to do next," Durbin said. "I'm glad to be here today, I've been here in the past, and I especially want to be here now at this moment in history."

Quigley pledged that he and other elected leaders in Chicago would stand together against the Trump administration's threats.

"This is more than a parade today. This is a show of unity. This is a reminder that there's more that unites us than divides us. This is a time to step up, and step together, and appreciate why this matters," he said.

Quigley said, if the Trump administration truly cared about public safety in Chicago, they would communicate with local leaders and coordinate with them on fighting crime, and wouldn't have cut hundreds of millions of dollars in funding to anti-violence initiatives nationwide.

"If this was really about safe neighborhoods, the money it took to deploy the National Guard in Los Angeles could hire 2,000 Chicago police officers. Instead, they cut $800 million from anti-violence programs, including the ones that are working right here in Chicago, and of course they're doing nothing about preventing gun violence," Quigley said.

In addition to a strong Chicago police presence along the parade route, mixed in the crowd were volunteers wearing white shirts and donning orange whistles with a true purpose.

Vicky Lugo, whose United Merchants Pilsen Chamber of Commerce organized the parade, said three short whistle blasts means someone has spotted federal immigration agents on the streets.

"One continuous long whistle means that someone is being arrested," she said.

Organizers felt the extra precautions were necessary after the president's repeated threats of a crackdown on immigration, but more importantly after his latest social media post.

While many viewed the president's post and actions as scary, the Mexican American community in Chicago continued to stand resilient, flying the U.S. flag alongside the Mexican flag during Saturday's parade.

"That's who we are as a country. We have pride in our heritage, but we also have patriotic pride in America," William Cook said.

President Trump has said "we're going in" to Chicago, but hasn't said when agents or troops will be sent in

Mr. Trump has targeted Chicago and other Democrat-led cities for expanded federal intervention. His administration has said it will step up immigration enforcement in the Windy City, as he did in Los Angeles, and would deploy National Guard troops to help fight crime. In addition to sending troops to Los Angeles in June, Mr. Trump deployed them last month in Washington, D.C., as part of his unprecedented law enforcement takeover of the nation's capital. 

The president had told reporters Tuesday that "we're going in" to Chicago, but "I didn't say when." 

An internal government memo obtained by CBS News this week showed that the Department of Homeland Security asked the Pentagon to accommodate roughly 250 federal agents and 140 vehicles at Naval Station Great Lakes in Chicago's northern suburbs – the largest military base in Illinois and the Navy's largest training station.

CBS News Chicago has learned that the naval base will allow DHS to occupy an office for a month, until Oct. 5. In that time, they'll also have access to storage space for non-lethal munitions, and parking space for officers.

Durbin, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL) visited the naval base on Friday to discuss the plans to use the facility as a base for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

The lawmakers said they did get some answers from the U.S. Navy, but when they tried to get more information from the Department of Homeland Security, they were turned away.

"DHS fled. They fled, and they're hiding, and that is a clear indication of how secretive they want to be on this effort, and so we are deeply concerned, and we are going to stay on top of it," Duckworth said.  

Dozens of protesters gathered outside the naval base on Saturday, opposing the talks of using the facility as a hub for an immigration crackdown in Chicago. They gathered on the streets outside of Naval Station Great Lakes, then marched through the neighboring community, holding signs defending immigrant families, and opposing ICE agents and federal troops in the community.

Hundreds of protesters also gathered in downtown Chicago on Saturday evening, marching on Michigan Avenue.

Judge rules Trump's deployment of National Guard in L.A. illegal

Earlier this week, a federal judge in California ruled the president's deployment of troops in Los Angeles violated federal law.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer found that the president and his administration violated the Posse Comitatus Act, a 1878 law that prohibits the use of the military for domestic law enforcement. Breyer blocked the Trump administration from deploying or using the National Guard currently deployed in California, and any military troops in the state, for civilian law enforcement.

His decision restricts the use of service members to engage in arrests, apprehensions, searches, seizures and traffic and crowd control. The injunction applies only to the Trump administration's use of the National Guard in California, not nationally, and it does not require the Defense Department to withdraw the 300 National Guard troops who remain in Los Angeles. Breyer noted that the administration is not prohibited from using troops consistent with the Posse Comitatus Act, and wrote that they can continue to protect federal property in a manner allowed under the law.

The judge froze his injunction until noon on Sept. 12, likely to allow the Trump administration time to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.

Anna Kelly, a White House spokesperson, indicated that the Justice Department will appeal the ruling.

"Once again, a rogue judge is trying to usurp the authority of the commander-in-chief to protect American cities from violence and destruction. President Trump saved Los Angeles, which was overrun by deranged leftist lunatics sowing mass chaos until he stepped in," she said in a statement. "While far-left courts try to stop President Trump from carrying out his mandate to Make America Safe Again, the president is committed to protecting law-abiding citizens, and this will not be the final say on the issue."