‘ NOT FOR SALE’
Rahm remains resolute even as Justice Department moves to strip Chicago and other ‘ sanctuary cities’ of federal funds
“NEITHER THE FACTS, NOR THE LAWARE ON THEIR SIDE. REGARDLESS, LETMEBE CLEAR: CHICAGO’S VALUES AND CHICAGO’S FUTURE ARE NOT FOR SALE.” MAYORRAHMEMANUEL
The Justice Department on Friday took its first steps to strip Chicago and Cook County of some crime- fighting grants as part of a drive to deny federal money to socalled “sanctuary cities” shielding illegal immigrants.
Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle were two of nine local officials sent a Justice Department letter setting a June 30 deadline to declare compliance with federal laws or risk losing $ 3.2 million in Justice Department grants.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel remained defiant: “Neither the facts, nor the law are on their side,” he said.
Besides Chicago and Cook County, letters were sent to officials in New York City, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Las Vegas, Miami, Milwaukee and California.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, while in San Diego to observe border and immigration detention operations, discussed the sanctuary cities issue in his prepared remarks.
“Forcing local law enforcement to release criminal aliens only helps violent gangs and criminals,” Sessions said. “Sanctuary jurisdictions put criminals back on your streets. They help these gangs to refill their ranks and puts innocent life — including the lives of countless lawabiding immigrants— in danger by refusing to share vital information with federal law enforcement.”
The Sun- Times earlier reported that in Chicago, there was no known connection between illegal immigrants and the spike in the city’s violent crime.
In order to retain eligibility for federal grants, by the end of June a “Federal, state or local government entity or official” must confirm the jurisdiction “may not prohibit, or in any way restrict, any government entity or official from sending to, or receiving from, the Immigration and Naturalization Service information regarding the citizenship or immigration status, lawful or unlawful, of any individual.”
In a press release, the Justice Department said that “many of these jurisdictions are also crumbling under the weight of illegal immigration and violent crime. The number of murders in Chicago has skyrocketed, rising more than 50 percent from the 2015 levels.”
Preckwinkle spokesman Frank Shuftan said the county “is aware of this new requirement for federal grant funding, first announced under a prior administration. … It remains our position that the county complies with all applicable federal laws.”
Emanuel responded to the letter by standing his ground.
“Neither the facts, nor the law are on their side,” the mayor was quoted as saying in an emailed statement.
“Regardless, let me be clear: Chicago’s values and Chicago’s future are not for sale.”
The Emanuel administration has estimated that Chicago stands to lose $ 13.4 million in federal anticrime grants if Sessions follows through on his threat to cut or even “claw back” Justice Department funds flowing to the so- called sanctuary cities.
The annual funding at stake for Chicago comes in the form of three federal grants: $ 3.05 million in federal asset forfeiture funds; $ 3.2 million in so- called Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants and $ 3.13 million under the so- called “Cops Hiring Program.”
The money is used for a host of law enforcement activities, ranging from hiring additional police officers to buying police vehicles and other equipment.
If Sessions follows through on his threat to “clawback” existing grants, Chicago stands to lose another $ 3.5 million to $ 4 million in “existing DOJ grants that have yet to be fully expended,” according toMolly Poppe, a spokesperson for the city’s Office of Budget andManagement.
Sessions has not yet said whether the “claw back” threat is confined to federal grants not fully expended or whether he would seek to reclaim years of DOJ grant funding already spent.
The relatively low estimate helps to explain why the Wall Street rating agency Standard & Poor’s has concluded that Trump’s decision to authorize a federal funding cutoff to sanctuary cities was “unlikely” to impact Chicago’s shaky bond rating—“at least in the near- term.”