Sessions says he will use power to stop Calif. ‘sanctuary’ policies
The Washington Post
Speaking before a crowd of law enforcement officials in a state he had just accused of violating the Constitution, Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Wednesday excoriated California and some of its state and local leaders for passing laws and taking actions that he said obstruct immigration enforcement and put officers in danger.
It was an unusually strident speech to formally announce the Justice Department’s Tuesday lawsuit against the state over its immigration policies. Mr. Sessions emphasized the supremacy of the federal government by referencing Abraham Lincoln and secession, and he said California’s actions “directly and adversely impact the work of our federal officers” and “undermine the duly-established immigration law in America.”
After Mr. Sessions’ comments at the doorstep of the liberal powerhouse’s Capitol, California’s Democratic governor slammed the attorney general for “initiating a reign of terror” against immigrants in California.
Mr. Sessions took particular aim at Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, a Democrat, for warning constituents last month about an impending raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement — alleging her comments prevented authorities from making 800 arrests. And he said he planned to use the full might of the federal government to bring her state in line.
“California, absolutely, appears to me, is using every power it has — powers it doesn’t have — to frustrate federal law enforcement,” Mr. Sessions said. “So you can be sure I’m going to use every power I have to stop them.”
The comments at the California Peace Officers Association’s annual gathering in Sacramento come a day after Mr. Sessions’ Justice Department sued the state of California, alleging that three recently passed laws that benefit undocumented immigrants are unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was the culmination of a clash both the Trump administration and California have been heading toward for more than a year, with each antagonist reaping political profit from the battle. The Trump administration has sought to demonstrate that it will not tolerate noncompliance with federal immigrationenforcement.