Sessions Punches Back: DOJ to Sue California to Strike Down ‘Sanctuary’ Laws as Uncon
Sessions Punches Back: DOJ to Sue California to Strike Down ‘Sanctuary’ Laws as Unconstitutional
6 Mar 2018
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Update: DOJ filed its complaint, motion for preliminary injunction, and supporting exhibits shortly after 9 PM Eastern Tuesday.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions will speak Wednesday about his Department of Justice’s (DOJ) first-of-its-kind lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of three of California’s “sanctuary” laws, Breitbart News has learned.
Relying on both federal statutes and the U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, DOJ will ask the U.S. District Court for the District of Eastern California to issue a preliminary injunction blocking the enforcement of these laws intended to protect illegal aliens by preventing cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. DOJ will also seek declaratory judgement that these laws are unconstitutional – “preempted” by federal immigration law – when it files late Tuesday night.
“The Department of Justice and the Trump administration are going to fight these unjust, unfair, and unconstitutional policies that have been imposed on you,” Attorney General Sessions is expected to tell a gathering of California police officers Wednesday in Sacramento. “We are fighting to make your jobs safer and to help you reduce crime in America. And I believe that we are going to win.”
A senior DOJ official made clear that he believed the laws intentionally created obstacles for federal immigration enforcement in California, the state with most illegal aliens in the country.
The defendants are the State of California, Gov. Jerry Brown, and California Attorney General Xavier Becerra – the elected official who, perhaps more than any other, has made protection of criminal illegal aliens and “resistance” to President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda his signature policy.
The doctrine of “preemption” dictates that, as federal law reigns supreme over state law, states may not enforce laws that frustrate federal policies. It has a long history, dating back nearly to the dawn of the Republic with 1819’s McCulloch v. Maryland. In the immigration context, the doctrine was widely heralded by open borders advocates in 2012, when the Supreme Court relied on it to strike down sections of Arizona’s tough SB 1070 anti-illegal immigration bill in Arizona v. United States.
The legal shoe is on the other foot now, as the Trump administration seeks to have California’s leading-edge sanctuary laws overturned on a similar theory.
All three laws, passed in response to Trump’s victory in the 2016 presidential election, added new dimensions to California’s role as the nation’s leading “sanctuary” for illegal aliens. Not content with being merely a typical sanctuary jurisdiction, where, as a matter of policy, police do not contact U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents about suspected illegal aliens, collect information on an arrestee’s immigration status, or comply with requests to hold suspected illegal aliens for ICE pickup, California enacted HB 450, SB 54, and HB 103.
HB 450 came into effect at the beginning of the year. It prohibits private employers from cooperating with ICE. Under the law, if employers do not refuse to allow ICE officials onto their property without a warrant, they face stiff fines. If they try to check an employee’s immigration status a second time, they face fines. If they do not inform employees of ICE enforcement efforts about which they know, they face fines.
During the first round of ICE raids after HB 450 went into effect, Becerra was very clear that his office “will prosecute” employers who cooperate.
A senior DOJ official told reporters if the federal agency involved have been the FBI rather than ICE, a law like AB 450 would be inconceivable. He feared that, given its broadest reading, it might prohibit all private property owners from assisting federal immigration enforcement.
In the case of HB 450, the California State Assembly’s Judiciary Committee made clear they were passing this law specifically because of “an expected increase in federal immigration enforcement.”
SB 54, also coming into effect January 1, affects law enforcement officials, holding them statewide to the “sanctuary” standard previously in place in cities like San Francisco under penalty of state law. Under HB 54, California’s police officers and sheriffs cannot provide ICE with the release dates of the criminal illegal aliens whom they are holdings. Except for those held for a narrow set of serious crimes, these law enforcement officers cannot transfer detainees to federal custody voluntarily.
Finally, AB 103 is a 2017 law Becerra has used to “inspect” facilities the Department of Homeland Security uses to house suspected illegal aliens who are awaiting removal proceedings. DOJ believes these inspections have demanded access to proprietary DHS documents and information.
The government will first seek to have a preliminary injunction put in place to block enforcement of all three laws while their constitutionality is considered. DOJ will therefore have to show some irreparable harm that will come from allowing California to use these laws in the meantime. Senior DOJ officials were confident that, with a typical briefing schedule, they expect a ruling on their preliminary injunction within weeks.
http://www.breitbart.com/big-governm...onstitutional/
Trump administration suing California over sanctuary laws
Trump administration suing California over sanctuary laws
March 6, 2018 8:18 PM CDT Updated: March 6, 2018 8:35 PM CDT
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is suing to block California laws that extend protections to people living in the U.S. illegally, the most aggressive move yet in its push to force so-called sanctuary cities and states to cooperate with immigration authorities. California officials remained characteristically defiant, vowing to defend their landmark legislation.
Justice Department officials said Tuesday that a trio of state laws that, among other things, bar police from asking people about their citizenship status or participating in federal immigration enforcement activities are unconstitutional and have kept federal agents from doing their jobs. Attorney General Jeff Sessions is expected to announce the lawsuit Wednesday at an annual gathering of law enforcement officers in Sacramento. It names as defendants the state of California, Gov. Jerry Brown and Attorney General Xavier Becerra.
"I say, bring it on," said California Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, a Los Angeles Democrat who wrote the sanctuary state bill.
It is the latest salvo in an escalating feud between the Trump administration and California, which has resisted the president on issues like taxes and marijuana policy and defiantly refuses to help federal agents detain and deport undocumented immigrants. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has said it will increase its presence in California, and Sessions wants to cut off funding to jurisdictions that won't cooperate.
The lawsuit is being filed as the Justice Department also reviews Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf's decision to warn of an immigration sweep in advance, which ICE said allowed hundreds of immigrants to elude detention.
The state laws being challenged were a response to President Donald Trump's hawkish immigration policies and widespread fear in immigrant communities following a campaign in which he promised to sharply ramp up the deportation of people living in the U.S. illegally. The decision to sue California shows Sessions and Trump remain aligned on this priority, even as their relationship has recently deteriorated, with Trump attacking his attorney general and Sessions pushing back.
Brown mimicked Trump on Twitter Tuesday night, writing: "At a time of unprecedented political turmoil, Jeff Sessions has come to California to further divide and polarize America. Jeff, these political stunts may be the norm in Washington, but they don't work here. SAD!!!"
One of California's laws prohibits employers from letting immigration agents enter worksites or view employee files without a subpoena or warrant, an effort to prevent workplace raids.
Another stops local governments from contracting with for-profit companies and ICE to hold immigrants. Justice Department officials, speaking to reporters Tuesday, said that violates the Constitution's supremacy clause, which renders invalid state laws that conflict with federal ones.
The Supreme Court reinforced the federal government's primacy in enforcing immigration law when it blocked much of Arizona's tough 2010 immigration law on similar grounds. The high court found several key provisions undermined federal immigration law, though it upheld a provision requiring officers, while enforcing other laws, to question the immigration status of people suspected of being in the country illegally.
In this case, California "has chosen to purposefully contradict the will and responsibility of Congress to protect our homeland," Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said in a statement.
Sessions has blamed sanctuary city policies for crime and gang violence and announced in July that cities and states could only receive certain grants if they cooperate with immigration agents. California is suing to force the administration to release one such grant. The state wants a judge to certify that its laws are in compliance with federal immigration law.
Defenders of sanctuary policies say they increase public safety by promoting trust between immigrant communities and law enforcement, while allowing police resources to be used to fight other crimes.
"We're America's economic engine, and it is precisely because we embrace the cultural gifts immigrants bestow us and their diversity that they become the backbone of our economy," de Leon said.
Sessions' audience Wednesday includes members of the California Peace Officers' Association and groups representing police chiefs, sheriffs, district attorneys, narcotics investigators and the California Highway Patrol.
The groups' members have often been split on sanctuary policies. None of the groups favored the state law restricting cooperation with immigration officials, but only the California State Sheriffs' Association was actively opposed and some individual officials voiced support.
Protesters from labor unions, the Democratic Party and immigrant rights organizations planned to rally along with some state and local elected officials outside the hotel where Sessions will speak.
Becerra is speaking to the same law enforcement organizations later Wednesday.
Becerra, a Democrat who is up for election in November, has been sharply critical of Republicans Trump and Sessions, particularly on immigration policies.
He has said federal authorities need to have warrants before collecting information from state employers or entering nonpublic areas.
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Justice Dept. suing California over sanctuary laws, Gov. Brown calls it a 'political
Justice Dept. suing California over sanctuary laws, Gov. Brown calls it a 'political stunt'
Mar 6, 2018, 10:08 PM ET
California Gov. Jerry Brown has slammed the Trump administration's latest salvo against the Golden State -- the Justice Department announced Tuesday night it is suing to block state laws that extend protections to people living in the U.S. illegally -- claiming it's a move that will "further divide and polarize America."
"At a time of unprecedented political turmoil, Jeff Sessions has come to California to further divide and polarize America," the Democratic lawmaker tweeted.
Then, in a direct shout-out to the attorney general, Brown wrote, "Jeff, these political stunts may be the norm in Washington, but they don’t work here. SAD!!!"
https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images...HV_normal.jpeg Jerry Brown ✔ @JerryBrownGov
At a time of unprecedented political turmoil, Jeff Sessions has come
to California to further divide and polarize America. Jeff, these political
stunts may be the norm in Washington, but they don’t work here. SAD!!!
5:56 PM - Mar 6, 2018
The defendants named in the lawsuit are the state of California, Gov. Jerry Brown and Attorney General Xavier Becerra.
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California Gov. Jerry Brown, talks during a discussion at the America's Pledge launch event at the U.S. "We Are Still In" pavilion at the COP 23 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Nov. 11, 2017 in Bonn, Germany.
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Xavier Becerra speaks during the House Democrats news conference, May 11, 2016, to discuss
Donald Trump?'s visit to Capitol Hi
Justice Department officials said Tuesday that three state laws, which in part bar police from asking people about their citizenship status or participating in federal immigration enforcement activities, are unconstitutional. The Justice Department claimed that these laws prevent federal agents from doing their jobs.
California Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, a Democrat who wrote the sanctuary state bill, tweeted, "Our nation’s Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions is suing CA because we refuse to help the Trump administration tear apart honest, hardworking immigrant families. To that, I say BRING IT ON! CA will not be intimidiated."
De Leon continued, "If Sessions is serious about cracking down on crime, he should stop fretting about CA and look in his own backyard. 2016 FBI stats show crime is far higher in his home state of Alabama than in California.
https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images...hWD_normal.jpg Kevin de Leόn ✔ @kdeleon
Our nation’s Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions is suing CA because we refuse to
help the Trump administration tear apart honest, hardworking immigrant
families. To that, I say BRING IT ON! CA will not be intimidiated.
Kevin de Leόn ✔ @kdeleon If Sessions is serious about cracking down on crime, he should stop fretting
about CA and look in his own backyard. 2016 FBI stats show crime is far
higher in his home state of Alabama than in California.
6:12 PM - Mar 6, 2018
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State Senate President pro Tempore Kevin de Leon urges lawmakers to approve his gun control
bill SB1235, May 19, 2016,
De Leon also described the lawsuit as a "racist and xenophobic attack," writing, "If Sessions is serious about cracking down on crime, he should stop fretting about CA and look in his own backyard. 2016 FBI stats show crime is far higher in his home state of Alabama than in California."
And in a final tweet Tuesday night, de Leon wrote, "Bottom line: California will NOT help President Trump, Jeff Sessions or Thomas Homan rip children from the arms of their mothers and fathers. Here in CA, we embrace our historic diversity, and we will do everything in our legal power to protect it."
https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images...hWD_normal.jpg Kevin de Leόn ✔ @kdeleon
Replying to @kdeleon
Based on Jeff Session's track record in court so far -
I like our odds of beating back his racist and xenophobic attack on the CA Values Act.
Kevin de Leόn ✔ @kdeleon
Bottom line: California will NOT help President Trump, Jeff Sessions or Thomas Homan
rip children from the arms of their mothers and fathers. Here in CA, we embrace our
historic diversity, and we will do everything in our legal power to protect it.
6:12 PM - Mar 6, 2018
Sessions is expected to announce the lawsuit Wednesday at an annual gathering of law enforcement officers in the state capital of Sacramento.
** Read the Complaint at link.
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/justi...ry?id=53570616