Trump confirms he's stopping federal funding to ‘sanctuary cities’ — is yours on the list?
President Donald Trump announced that his administration will cease federal payments to sanctuary cities and states with sanctuary policies starting February 1, amid the ongoing crackdown against immigration. In his speech in Michigan on Tuesday, the president cited jurisdictions that allegedly protect criminals and fuel fraud and crime. These so-called sanctuary cities are home to local governments that are resisting the administration's immigration policies. While Trump didn't provide the specifics, reports suggest that such a move could have deeper implications across the U.S.
“Starting February 1, we are not making any payments to sanctuary cities or states having sanctuary cities because they do everything possible to protect criminals at the expense of American citizens,” the president said during his address at the Detroit Economic Club, NBC News reported. Without providing specifics, he continued, “It breeds fraud and crime and all of the other problems that come, so we’re not making any payment to anybody that supports sanctuary cities." When reporters asked him about the nature of funding that would be affected, he replied, “You’ll see. It’ll be significant.”
While there is no strict definition for sanctuary policies or sanctuary cities, the term generally describes jurisdictions that limit local law enforcement's cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Last year, the Department of Justice identified 18 cities as "sanctuary jurisdictions" including states as sanctuary jurisdictions, including New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, New Orleans, Denver, and Portland, Oregon. The District of Columbia is also considered a sanctuary jurisdiction, along with four county governments, according to Politico.
The announcement came as Trump targeted Minnesota and the Somali Americans in the state who were charged in a $250 million fraud case involving state-administered programs. He added that his administration has halted nearly 8,000 federal loans administered through the Small Business Administration to "suspected scammers in Minnesota." Apart from that, he explained that he was issuing 90-day notices to states like California that "bill the federal government" for costs of addressing the needs of immigrants.
Like Trump's other immigration policies, this too is expected to be met with legal challenges. Previously, two such attempts to cut off funding for sanctuary jurisdictions were shut down by courts. Last year, the president directed federal officials to withhold money from such jurisdictions that seek to shield people from deportation through an executive order. That move was struck down by a California-based federal judge despite government lawyers arguing that it was too early to stop the actions, as the specifics were yet to be laid out. A similar action during Trump's first term in 2017 was also struck down by courts, as per NBC.
However, the federal government has moved to halt funding for a variety of programs in recent weeks as part of the crackdown on immigration. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced it would withhold funds for programs in five Democratic-led states, citing concerns over fraud and misuse of funds, while targeting Minnesota as well. Fox News Digital reported that those programs included the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, the Child Care and Development Fund, and the Social Services Block Grant.
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