Yesterday, her first day on the job, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued an order pausing all aid to so-called “sanctuary” cities and municipalities. Her memo read, in part:
Consistent with applicable statutes, regulations, court orders, and terms, the Department of Justice shall pause the distribution of all funds until a review has been completed, terminate any agreements that are in violation of law or are the source of waste, fraud, or abuse, and initiate clawback or recoupment procedures, where appropriate.
The order places an immediate 60-day pause on distribution of funds to public jurisdictions that refuse cooperation with federal officials in immigration enforcement. In addition, it declares that the DOJ will not enter into any new agreements that would provide funding to non-governmental organizations that support illegal aliens.
In addition to denying funds to illegal sanctuaries, Bondi’s memo promised that the DOJ would investigate reports of jurisdictions impeding law enforcement and threatened prosecution “when necessary.”
Jurisdictions with sanctuary policies, whether overtly declared or otherwise, exist across the US. Pittsburgh, for example, while not having explicitly declared itself as such, is one major city whose leadership has declared opposition to stepped-up enforcement of immigration law. Its former mayor, Jim Kenney, actually videotaped himself dancing in his office and singing, “We are a sanctuary city” at one point. Its current mayor, Democrat Ed Gainey, recently declared: “I am not going to be working with ICE.” That position may be difficult to maintain, however, given that Republicans control the State Senate and are within a single vote of controlling the House. Meanwhile, Democrat Gov. Shapiro seems unwilling to go out on a limb for the sanctuaries, saying:
I don’t want people who are breaking the law in our communities who are wreaking havoc on our communities or claiming lives in our communities to be here.
Many other states and cities, particularly in the Northeast, the Upper Midwest, and the Pacific Coast may find it difficult to hang onto their policies when faced with a determined effort on the part of Bondi and Trump to rid them of criminal aliens. Those jurisdictions that attempt to do so might find themselves both broke and inundated by even more illegals than heretofore, as those fleeing DOJ and DHS crackdowns flock their way in search of vanishing sanctuary. Eventually, even the diehard may have to say, “No mas!”
For more, see Fox News.