Trump threatens federal funding cuts to sanctuary cities

Trump threatens sanctuary city funding

President Trump is taking aim at sanctuary cities nationwide, including here in Washington state. But Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell says the city is ready to fight his challenges legally.

SEATTLE - On Thursday, President Donald Trump took aim at sanctuary jurisdictions nationwide and in Washington state. On his social media platform, Truth Social, the president wrote, "No more Sanctuary Cities! They protect the Criminals, not the Victims. They are disgracing our Country, and are being mocked all over the World. Working on papers to withhold all Federal Funding for any City or State that allows these Death Traps to exist!!!"

The president’s plan could have fiscal impacts in Seattle and on the people who migrated to the city for protection. However, Mayor Bruce Harrell said Seattle is prepared to legally fight this.

"We are a welcoming city, and we don’t shy away from that. We don’t shy away from diversity, equity and inclusion," said Harrell.

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In February, the city joined a lawsuit with other so-called sanctuary jurisdictions. They are suing the Trump Administration for illegally threatening to cut federal dollars and weaponize local police in attempts to deport people out of the U.S.

"This is poor leadership coming from Washington, and we are preparing. We are in budget talks now about the fiscal impacts, and we’ll adjust accordingly," said Harrell. "Every day there’s a new headline that’s coming out of DC, which it’s very hard to understand the end game."

The mayor said data shows migrants have made a more than $30 billion impact on the city’s economy.

"Positive impact in terms of commerce here in our area. You look at the great families who contribute and pay taxes and that are safe people here," said Harrell.

The Trump Administration said sanctuary jurisdictions would be no more, as a part of the president’s executive order to target undocumented immigrants.

In a post to X, Gates McGavick, spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Justice, wrote, "Sanctuary jurisdictions believe the federal government should sit on the sidelines as criminal illegal aliens harm Americans. Not going to happen under this DOJ."

Harrell said the city was already discussing possible fiscal impacts, and a plan of action.

"From a practical standpoint, we are working with organizations, like One America, and other community-based organizations on what to do if there’s an unauthorized or surprise raid of people and families are broken up. So, we’re trying to put plans in place to make sure that people know what to do, where to go, who to call, make sure they have lawyers available. So, we’re working on those contingency plans as we speak," said the mayor.

Seattle’s "welcoming city" ordinances date back to 2003. The laws prevent city employees from asking about immigration status. Furthermore, the Seattle Police Department cannot help Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrest or deport undocumented immigrants, with few exceptions.

Seattle has been through this fight before with the Trump Administration. In 2017, the city sued the president and won its case in the U.S. District Court of Western Washington.

"We will stand behind our communities and I will lead the way with my great partners here and my community-based organizations," said Harrell.

This time around, Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown is helping Seattle and other communities lead the legal battle.

In a statement, the attorney general’s office wrote, "A better use of the president’s time would be to read the Constitution. State and local governments have the authority to decide how their resources will be used. Keep Washington Working fosters trust between law enforcement and immigrant communities. It ensures local resources won’t be co-opted to do work federal agencies are responsible for. This helps law enforcement focus on the most serious crimes in our communities."

Governor Bob Ferguson explained 28 percent of Washington’s budget consists of federal dollars, which is $43 million per biennium. Ferguson stressed the threats to the state’s funding are "very real."

In a statement, the governor wrote:

"The Keep Washington Working Act is consistent with — and requires compliance with — binding federal law. It allows our state and local jurisdictions to prioritize limited law enforcement resources. We are confident we can defend it in court. However, Donald Trump has shown he does not care about the law.

"My team and I are working closely with the Attorney General’s Office to defend our state from unlawful federal actions. I am not going to allow the federal government to arbitrarily and unlawfully withhold funds that support individuals on Medicaid, our education system, child welfare, emergency relief and so much more.

"This statement from the president underscores the need to engage in serious planning now, while the Legislature is in session, to prepare for ongoing and significant threats to our federal funding."

The Source: Information for this article comes from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting.