Sessions Steps up on Punishing Sanctuary Cities

"So here's my message to Mayor Schaaf: How dare you? How dare you needlessly endanger the lives of law enforcement just to promote your radical open borders agenda." - Attorney General Jeff Sessions

On the heels of the filing of a federal lawsuit in the Eastern District of California late Thursday, Jeff Sessions sent a powerful message to criminal mayors and governors across the country with his speech in Sacramento today, denouncing the sanctuary policies of cities like San Francisco and states like California.

"A refusal to apprehend and deport those, especially the criminal element, effectively rejects all immigration law and creates an open borders system," Sessions stated. "Open borders is a radical, irrational idea that cannot be accepted.

"There is no nullification. There is no secession," Sessions declared. "Federal law is 'the supreme law of the land.' I would invite any doubters to Gettysburg, and to the graves of John C. Calhoun and Abraham Lincoln."

The lawsuit is a major step forward and pending it's outcome, a temporary victory for immigration hawks in the ongoing battle between the Trump administration and criminal state and local jurisdictions over how far municipalities and states can go to block local and federal law enforcement officers from upholding federal immigration law.



The suit itself targets three California laws. Senate Bill 54, Assembly bill 450 and Assembly bill 103 and it names both California Gov. Jerry Brown and Attorney General Xavier Becerra personally as defendants.

Gov. Brown has long advocated for Sanctuary legislation, as California has allowed illegal immigrants to receive driver's licences since 2015. California is also the state where Kate Steinle was murdered by an illegal immigrant that had previously been deported several times.

How this will affect the ongoing DACA debate remains to be seen, but the developments of the last 24 hours are certainly a step in the right direction.

Should Sanctuary City and States' Mayors and Governors be arrested? Share your opinion in the comments section below.