Democratic leaders and members of the progressive squad have remained silent on a White House plea for local law enforcement in sanctuary cities to better cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
In comments to Fox News Digital last week, a White House spokesperson said that the administration welcomes “local law enforcement’s support and cooperation in apprehending and removing individuals who pose a risk to national security or public safety.”
“When a local jurisdiction has information about an individual who could pose a threat to public safety, we want them to share that information with ICE,” the spokesperson continued.
The stance seemingly puts the White House out of step with many Democrats and immigrant rights advocates, who have argued in favor of keeping sanctuary policies, which either limit or completely forbid local law enforcement from cooperating with ICE, in place.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., left, and President Biden, right. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images and Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)
The statement could also be seen as a shift by President Biden, who during his run for president pushed back against local police cooperating with ICE.
In the early days of Biden’s presidency, the administration also rolled back a Trump-era Justice Department grant policy that rewarded local law enforcement agencies for their cooperation with federal authorities while cutting millions in funding to sanctuary cities.
Fox News Digital reached out to the offices of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Dick Durbin, D-Ill., John Fetterman, D-Pa., and Alex Padilla to gauge their support for the White House statement, but did not receive a reply. All have large Sanctuary Cities in their states. Fox News Digital also reached out to the offices of so-called “Squad” members, including Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Cori Bush, D-Mo., Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., and Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., but did not receive a reply.
President Joe Biden. (AP/Evan Vucci)
The White House stance comes as the status of sanctuary cities has become increasingly controversial in recent months amid multiple high-profile crimes allegedly carried out by illegal immigrants, including the recent case of 22-year-old Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who was found dead last month and resulted in the arrest of 26-year-old Venezuelan citizen Jose Antonio Ibarra, who had entered the country illegally. Ibarra has since been charged with felony murder, false imprisonment and kidnapping in the case.
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The recent spike in crimes allegedly carried out by illegal migrants has also caught the attention of New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who last week questioned his city’s sanctuary policies and argued that they have been a “detriment to public safety.”
“We should be communicating with ICE, and if ICE makes the determination of deporting, then they should,” Adams said at a news conference last week, according to the Associated Press. “The mere fact that we cannot share with ICE that this person has committed three robberies, that this person is part of an organized gang crew, the mere fact that we can’t say that or communicate that, that’s problematic for me.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Adams’ office did not immediately respond to a Fox News request for comment.
That stance was also seemingly a reversal from the mayor’s stance on the campaign trail, including an October 2021 post on X that vowed New York City would “remain a sanctuary city” under his administration.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas speaks to the media about an overview of public safety plans for Super Bowl week at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center on February 07, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Candice Ward/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the renewed push by the White House and mayors such as Adams has fueled pushback from migrant rights groups, with the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) calling the New York City mayor’s recent remarks on the city’s sanctuary status “shameful.”
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“Mayor Adams’ shameful threats to end New York’s years-long status as a sanctuary city,” the NYCLU said in a statement, according to USA Today, adding that a change in the city’s policies would “only result in the cruel targeting, demonization, and demoralization of our immigrant neighbors.”
