Below is my column in USA Today on states and cities joining the “resistance” to the Trump Administration and its immigration policies. Last week, California Attorney General (AG) Rob Bonta joined that alliance after issuing new guidance to courthouses, healthcare facilities, universities, schools, labor agencies, public libraries and shelters on opposing federal enforcement efforts. However, the costs of the resistance will be borne by the citizens of these states and cities in a confrontation with federal authority.
Here is the column:
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston recently became the latest Democratic leader to engage in a chest-pounding call to arms in resistance to the incoming Trump administration’s plan to deport people who entered the United States unlawfully.
While a post-election poll by YouGov for CBS News shows that a massive 73% of adults want President-elect Donald Trump to prioritize the repatriation of illegal migrants, the mayor pledged to not only have Denver police “stationed at the county line to keep (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) out” but also that “you would have 50,000 Denverites there.”
Johnston said it would be like a “Tiananmen Square moment” and answered yes when questioned whether he’d be ready to go to jail.
That moment soon passed, however, as lawyers apparently explained to the mayor that armed resistance to the federal government is often called – wait for it – insurrection.
It appears that Johnston was not keen on becoming the Jefferson Davis of the left, so he backpedaled, stating, “Would I have taken it back if I could? Yes, I probably wouldn’t have used that image.”
Yet, Johnston is not alone in pledging resistance to repatriation efforts. Cities are reaffirming or adopting sanctuary city status, including most recently Boston. The cities pledge to continue their ban on any cooperation with the federal government in detaining or removing unlawful migrants. Other mayors are pledging to use city funds to pay for the defense costs of those fighting deportation.
The doubling down on sanctuary city promises will likely draw more migrants to those communities, which some mayors have welcomed despite the heavy costs of housing, education and other city services.
Immigration proved to be one of the top issues for voters in this year’s election, which brought control of both houses of Congress and the White House to the GOP. Citizens overwhelmingly supported new tough immigration measures, including deportations.
With Democratic cities joining the “resistance,” they may find the costs even higher. Congress cannot compel cooperation without triggering constitutional concerns. In Federalist #46, James Madison recognized the right of state officials to oppose federal policies, including “the refusal to co-operate with officers of the Union.”
In cases such as Printz v. United States (1997), which involved federal requirements that states cooperate on gun control measures, the Supreme Court enforced an anti-commandeering line that allowed states to refuse such federal orders.
Cities rely on federal money to pay for migrant services
However, this is a two-way street. Just as cities and states do not have to carry water for the federal government, the federal government does not have to supply the water to the states. The second Trump administration and Congress can play hardball by barring federal funds in various areas for these cities.
With their status as sanctuary cities, housing, law enforcement and social programming costs will continue to rise. Many of those budgets are heavily infused with federal funding. However, if cities resist or frustrate federal policy, there are ample reasons why the federal government might restrict funding.
Such measures can go too far. The Supreme Court has warned that financial penalties can be so coercive that they effectively commandeer states. However, the federal government is not required to spend money on services where costs are rising at least in part because of resistance to federal law.
Under constitutional law, the federal government cannot be a bully, but it does not have to be a chump.
It’s clear that elected leaders like Johnston did not think very long or well before starting a war with the incoming administration. In addition to the possible loss of federal funds, acts of resistance can trigger criminal liability if they amount to actively shielding or hiding unlawful migrants sought by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Under federal immigration law, it is a felony when anyone in “knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that an alien has come to, entered, or remains in the United States in violation of law, conceals, harbors, or shields from detection, or attempts to conceal, harbor, or shield from detection, such alien in any place, including any building or any means of transportation.”
That is not triggered by a simple refusal to cooperate, but some officials have been accused of crossing the line, including state judges. It also could endanger private groups that work closely with these cities in housing and transporting unlawful migrants.
Obama defended federal government’s power over immigration
Moreover, as I wrote recently, Trump can cite a curious ally in this fight: Barack Obama.
During the Obama administration, the federal government largely triumphed over states in barring their interference with federal immigration policies. Back then, Democrats supported President Obama in claiming that the federal government had overriding authority on immigration in cases like Arizona v. United States.
The pressure on cities could grow if the Trump administration prioritizes members of violent gangs such as Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) or Tren de Aragua for deportation. To resist those efforts would be politically unpalatable in cities dealing with crime associated with such gangs.
It could take years to hash out these efforts. However, if Denver’s Mayor Johnston is any measure of the resistance, the chest-pounding may decline when the federal funding dries up.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University. He is the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage.”
Another great article. And I truly hope that Republicans in congress have the balls to actually cut off federal funds to sanctuary cities. Why should the American taxpayer fund policies intended to destroy America?!
Where in the world did I get the name “scrumptiouslydonut5b81c2f01c?! I made the above comment, and I have tried three times to get logged in with an actual name. That is not it! Most of my posts (like a lot others) have been registered as “anonymous”. Will somebody please tell me how to get registered on this site with a real name?
Why make it easy for the Chicoms, NSA, FBI, the Ruskin FSB, DHS, DIA, DIS, CIA, probably IRAN, MI6, MOSSAD, Microsoft, the banks, and probably some kid in their Mothers basement, to log and track everything you type? Anon probably does nothing to stop any of that, like the mask did nothing to stop the Fauci funded, Chicom created virus, but who knows? Maybe it makes it more challenging for them. I mean, bureaucrats and spooks get board too.
Upon checking the results of the 2023 Mayoral election in Denver, at least two items stick out: 1. Mike Johnston did not win in anything close to a landslide — it was 55,000 votes for him vs. 43,000 votes for his opponent — and both candidates are affiliated with the Democrat Party…..and #2. Reid Hoffman put his full force behind Johnston — who is Reis H.? The wealthy and influential founder of that well-known publicly-listed corporation – Linked In
How about we start a movement in which Linked In corporation is intimately associated with Johnston’s position of harboring criminal illegal aliens and resistance to the incoming Administration’s efforts to deport them?
Food for thought.
@ggreenwald
“Jen Psaki is a congenital liar and morally vacuous DC cretin who lies and smears people as foreign agents the way most people change their socks.
She succeeds in DC and liberal corporate media not despite those traits but precisely because of them.”
Where Democrats are concerned the criminality never ends.
ActBlue Bombshell: Dem money platform tells Congress it didn’t block foreign gift cards until fall
ActBlue disclosed that it updated its policies on Sept. 9 to “automatically reject donations that use foreign prepaid/gift cards.”
ActBlue, the massive online fund-raising platform for liberal causes, has informed Congress it did not automatically block donations made with foreign-bought gift cards until recently, a potentially significant revelation in an ongoing investigation into whether China, Russia, Iran or Venezuela routed illicit money to Democrat candidates.
Cont:
https://justthenews.com/accountability/political-ethics/actblue-bombshell-dem-money-platform-tells-congress-it-didnt-block?utm_source=breaking&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter
Obama turned off the filter that stopped foreign countries from donating to his campaign. Not a peep from the Repubs…
Typical leftist who wants to be pat on the back for not committing crimes.
Did Obama really stop illegal campaign contributions?
Newsweek disclosed that some online contributions were difficult to verify as they were made using prepaid cards, which obscured the donors’ identities.
Why do leftists constantly undermine their credibility by not knowing what they are talking about? On this blog leftists don’t care because they have an unlimited number of identities including being anonymous.
“”With their status as sanctuary cities, housing, law enforcement and social programming costs will continue to rise. Many of those budgets are heavily infused with federal funding. However, if cities resist or frustrate federal policy, there are ample reasons why the federal government might restrict funding.
Remember When “Revenue Sharing” became a rallying cry under President Nixon? Maybe this will be the start of a new process; one of beginning to wean Cities and States off of federal funds.
“Trump chooses Kimberly Guilfoyle as his pick for Greece ambassador”
Nothing to see here, move along.
There is indeed nothing to see here. There is no reason in the world why he should not have chosen her. It’s completely normal and standard practice for a president to hand out ambassadorships to his supporters.
Mitch McConnell had another fall today.
Apparently it is very difficult to stand upright when you don’t have a spine.
An amazing the difference between today and the 1960’s or 1970’s. For one, truth seemed to matter. Congressmen/women would resign if shame fell upon them. The law would be fully enforced and not selectively applied. Two, the mentality of today is to lie, cheat, deceive and triple down on it. Three, Judges don’t rule righteously but politically. Has America has lost her very soul, if she can’t tell the difference in right & wrong ?
And attorneys, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies didn’t advertise pervasively and incessantly.
Johnston boasts that he “would have 50,000 Denverites there.” to form the resistance.
Let’s put that in perspective:
Population Total (rounded):
• Denver Estimated: 750,000
• Denver Metro: 3,000,000
• CSA: 3,750,000
By his own estimate apparently only 1-6% of Denver’s population agree with his stand to resist repatriation of illegal aliens. Just guessing here, but I’m betting none of them live in Aurora, Colorado.
Aurora is a different city. Thus, by definition, none of the 50,000 Denverites live in Aurora, Colorado