In a significant rebuke of the Trump administration's immigration policy, U.S. District Judge William Orrick has issued an extended preliminary injunction against withholding federal funds from cities and counties with sanctuary policies, a ruling stemming from lawsuits filed by various jurisdictions, including San Francisco and Portland. KATU reports that the judge's order protects not only Portland but 33 other sanctuary cities and counties from federal funding cuts for their noncooperation with immigration enforcement.
Orrick, whose appointment was under former President Barack Obama, stated that the Trump administration failed to present substantial opposition to this injunction except to wrongly claim the initial injunction was incorrect, as per reports from NBC News. Additionally, the administration's threats of cutting off funding or imposing grant conditions were branded unconstitutional and labeled as "coercive threats".
The dispute centers around an executive order from President Trump directing federal agencies to withhold money from jurisdictions labeled as sanctuaries, which are generally described as those limiting cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In response to the ruling, the Department of Homeland Security had crafted a list of over 500 such jurisdictions, stated The Hill, but the list was pulled from its website after objections that it also named localities supportive of stringent immigration policies.
This latest ruling by Orrick widens the scope of protection beyond West Coast cities to encompass locations across the nation, such as Boston, Denver, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Meanwhile, Trump's administration continues its increased funding for immigration enforcement operations, including deportation raids and detention facility construction, despite vigorous protests and legal challenges. The White House has not issued an immediate comment on the ruling, a silence in itself that seems as loud as the writs of juridical reprimand that now bind them.
