Congressman Elijah Cummings (Md.) Lauds Federal Court Decision Blocking President Trump’s Attempt to Withhold Federal Funds from Sanctuary Cities

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 25, 2017

Contact: Fabion Seaton (202) 225-4741

Cummings Lauds Federal Court Decision Blocking President Trump’s Attempt to Withhold Federal Funds from Sanctuary Cities

Washington, D.C. (Apr. 25, 2017)—Today, Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD) issued the following statement after a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump’s Executive Order to deny federal funds from sanctuary cities:

“President Trump’s attempt to withhold funds from sanctuary cities was cruel and misguided, and it undermined the safety of our communities. I applaud Judge Orrick for blocking this unconstitutional Executive Order and for reminding President Trump that ‘the Constitution vests the spending power in Congress, not the President, so the Order cannot constitutionally place new conditions on federal funds.’

“President Trump must learn that he cannot govern through fear, and he must learn that our nation’s local police departments should not be doing ICE’s job. Many mayors and police chiefs nationwide opposed this Executive Order, because they know that when immigrant communities are afraid to speak with law enforcement, it makes us all less safe.

“I hope that after this latest defeat in court, President Trump will try to work with Congress to find ways to fix our nation’s broken immigration system and keep our communities safe.”