The Trump administration on Thursday sued the state of Illinois as well as a slew of Chicago-area officials over their sanctuary laws. Chicago officials say it’s just another scare tactic.
“Trump’s targeting Chicago and the state of Illinois now because of the fact that obviously, from a political standpoint, he is trying to send a message to, quote, unquote, blue cities, blue states, that they’re in charge and that they’re going to move forward with their agenda,” Chicago Ald. Gilbert Villegas told NOTUS. “We’ve seen this play already.”
The suit, brought by the Justice Department, alleges that the state of Illinois, city of Chicago, the Chicago police superintendent, Cook County and the Cook County sheriff have laws that impede federal immigration officers from performing their duties. The laws in question “reflect their intentional effort to obstruct the Federal Government’s enforcement of federal immigration law,” the suit alleges.
The lawsuit is part of a broader effort under President Donald Trump to target so-called sanctuary policies, which limit police cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi have threatened to combat these policies through executive orders, limits to federal funding and even prosecution. The goal is to get police to share more information with ICE about undocumented people who come into contact with the justice system, including over civil infractions.
Former Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner stood behind the state’s law after the lawsuit. Illinois’ Trust Act bars police from cooperating with immigration enforcement for civil offenses. Like other sanctuary policies, it’s meant to promote trust in police and protect victims who might be swept up in the system.
“The bipartisan Illinois TRUST Act, signed into law by a Republican governor, has always been compliant with federal law and still is today,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement to CNN on Thursday. “We look forward to seeing them in court.”
Toni Preckwinkle, president of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, said the county will also defend its policy. Cook County’s “Welcoming City Ordinance” prohibits county agencies from inquiring about a person’s citizenship status and city resources from going to aid ICE.
“Cook County will stand firm in its commitment to justice and equity,” she said in a statement to WTTW. “We have faced challenges before, and have met them with resolve. We will do it again.”
Trump targeted Chicago over its immigration policies during his first term as well. His administration back then tried to withhold grant funding from locals with sanctuary laws, which led the city of Chicago to sue the administration.
The Trump administration lost in court in that suit. The Supreme Court also upheld California’s sanctuary law in 2020.
This time, it’s arguing that sanctuary laws harm national security and impede ICE. It is illegal to prevent federal immigration enforcement officers from performing their duties, but local police are not authorized to enforce immigration law in most cases and follow local guidelines on when to cooperate with ICE.
During a press conference on Wednesday, Congressional Hispanic Caucus members from states with sanctuary policies decried the misinformation about sanctuary laws.
Rep. Lou Correa said California’s sanctuary law has exceptions for serious crimes, but “those are facts that people don’t want to listen to.” He said the administration is instead trying to conduct “psychological warfare that is really affecting our communities.”
Villegas said it can be exhausting, but states and cities need to keep fighting for their independence.
“This is an attempt by this administration to reward those states that voted for him and punish those states that didn’t vote for him,” Villegas said. “Is it draining? Yes, but this is not a sprint. This is going to be a marathon.”
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Casey Murray is a NOTUS reporter and an Allbritton Journalism Institute fellow.