Trump Administration Challenges California’s Immigration Laws in Court

On Tuesday, the Trump administration finally challenged California in court over its lax immigration policies after almost a year of intimidation. The federal lawsuit seeks to undo a series of ‘sanctuary state’ bills the state is trying to pass.

Experts expect the legal move to spark more heated debates over the limits of immigration authority. It is not the first time the White House steps in against sanctuary jurisdictions, whose policies partially discourage cooperation with federal authorities on immigration issues.

• The Trump administration accuses sanctuary cities and counties of protecting illegal immigrants from deportation and shielding dangerous criminals.
• The President himself called illegal immigrants rapists and criminals on the campaign trail.

The Department of Justice will unveil the new lawsuit on Wednesday during an event in Sacramento, California. Attorney General Jeff Sessions described California’s new immigration laws as ‘unjust, unfair, and unconstitutional’ for the American people and promised to fight them in court.

California Governor Bitter about the Lawsuit

Sessions strongly believes that fighting off these bills would make America safer by reducing crime rates and protecting the jobs of hardworking Americans. “And I believe that we are going to win,” Sessions said about the latest lawsuit

California Governor Edmund Brown blasted the DOJ after the announcement. He believes that Sessions is only trying to polarize and divide the country. Brown told the AG that ‘political stunts’ like those work in Washington, not California.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra vowed to enforce the state’s laws and protect Californians. The new laws set restrictions on the cooperation between local law enforcement and federal authorities.

One such bill bars California employers from helping federal immigration authorities and forces businesses to give illegal employees a heads up before there is an ICE raid. A second bill prevents local authorities from giving federal agencies info on the illegal immigrants they released from jail.
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