President Trump said Tuesday that he’s preparing to halt federal funding to sanctuary cities and states on Feb. 1 — potentially yanking billions in revenue in response to laws barring cooperation with immigration agents.
“Starting February 1, we’re 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,” Trump said during a speech in Detroit.
“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.”
A list published in August by the Justice Department identifies 12 states — including California, Illinois and New York — and five of the nation’s 10 largest cities as sanctuary jurisdictions.
Advocates of sanctuary laws argue that they make crime victims feel comfortable engaging with law enforcement, but opponents highlight the fact that the policies prevent the deportation of violent criminals when prisons and jails balk at “detainer” requests from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
It’s unclear how comprehensive the financial pullback would be and if certain programs — such as state-administered Medicaid and food stamps — would be exempted.
The Trump administration this month froze social services funding to five states citing fraud concerns.
