U.S. Government Removes Sanctuary Jurisdiction List After Including Trump-Aligned Cities
X/ @NickMinock
June 3, 2025 Hour: 10:12 am
The DHS list included 36 states where cities and counties have allegedly sanctuary policies.
The U.S. government has removed a webpage listing so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions that it aimed to publicize and penalize for allegedly obstructing the enforcement of immigration laws, after the list included several localities that had publicly supported President Donald Trump.
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Published by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on May 29, the list included 36 of the 50 states, among them California, which has the highest number of cities and counties purported to have sanctuary policies that limit cooperation between local law enforcement and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
However, the designated webpage meant to publicize the list is no longer available. It was even removed from the press release in which DHS initially announced it.
The removal came after cities such as Huntington Beach — one of the few Republican strongholds in California and an open supporter of Trump — were included. Huntington Beach Mayor Pat Burns criticized the listing, calling it “negligence” that the city was labeled a “sanctuary” for immigrants.
He noted that in January, the city unanimously approved a declaration emphasizing that it cooperates with immigration agencies and allows all agencies to “participate” in ICE operations.
DHS Has Not Commented on the Apparent Errors
The department said the list was in response to an executive order signed by President Trump on April 28. The order instructs Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Attorney General Pam Bondi to identify and publicly denounce jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities.
In a statement, Noem warned that each jurisdiction included on the list would receive formal notice of its noncompliance and of all potential violations of federal criminal law.
DHS has demanded that these jurisdictions “immediately review and amend their policies” to align with those of the Trump administration, which has launched a major campaign to increase arrests and deportations.
Most states, counties and cities that have declared themselves immigrant sanctuaries have cited a lack of funding as a reason for not assisting ICE agents with arrests. This is not the first time Trump has gone after immigrant “sanctuaries.” During his first term, he froze federal funding to these cities, counties and states, but was challenged in court, where he lost most of the cases.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
