[otw_shortcode_dropcap label=”A” font=”Ultra” background_color_class=”otw-no-background” size=”large” border_color_class=”otw-no-border-color”][/otw_shortcode_dropcap] federal appeals court in New York sided with President Trump on a major issue regarding sanctuary cities by overturning a lower court’s decision “ordering the administration to release funding to New York City and seven states” reported the Associated Press. The seven states which sued the U.S. government are New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Washington, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Rhode Island.
These states joined with New York City in a lawsuit against the United States government after a 2017 announcement by the Justice Department saying it would “withhold grant money from cities and states until they gave federal immigration authorities access to jails and provide advance notice when someone in the country illegally is about to be released.”
As the immigration battle continues and sanctuary cities have been defiant against the policy, the Justice Department and Trump administration must shift in their approach to keep us safe. Prior to the 2017 change, cities and states only needed to show they were “not preventing local law enforcement from communicating with federal authorities about the immigration status of people who were detained” notes the Associated Press.
In defense of the shift in grant money requirements, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions explained, “so-called ‘sanctuary’ policies make all of us less safe because they intentionally undermine our laws and protect illegal aliens who have committed crimes.” In this week’s ruling protecting the Justice Department’s changes, the 2nd Circuit said, “the plain language of relevant laws make clear that the U.S. attorney general can impose conditions on states and municipalities receiving money.”
Additionally, the appeals court said that “these conditions help the federal government enforce national immigration laws and policies supported by successive Democratic and Republican administrations.” The Justice Department called the court’s decision a “major victory for Americans” while the American Civil Liberties Union was upset to see the court siding with the Trump administration, calling the decision a “real outlier.”
