Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass admitted this week that she wants the city to officially become a “sanctuary” for undocumented immigrants before President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House next year.
Bass, a Democrat who will serve as mayor of Los Angeles from December 2022, hopes to quickly pass an ordinance that would make his hometown a sanctuary city by the end of the year. According to She made the comments to local radio station KNX News. The statement places her among the latest Democratic politicians aiming to block President Trump’s hard-line immigration policies. (Related: President Trump may have stopped large caravan from approaching US border)
The Democratic mayor said he didn’t initially know Los Angeles wasn’t already a sanctuary city, noting that it needs to become one before President Trump takes back the White House in January.
“That really surprised me because for years I thought we were a sanctuary city,” Bass told KNX. “So what’s different is that the policy that was put in place was not a permanent policy. So I think Congress will be voting on sanctuary cities, hopefully very soon.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass speaks during a press conference announcing new initiatives to curb recent retail theft at City Hall in Los Angeles, California, August 17, 2023. (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP) via Getty Images)
“We stand with our immigrant communities and will ensure that no matter what policies they come up with, no Los Angeles people will be harmed and families will not be separated,” the mayor said.
Trump, who won in a landslide on Election Day, has made a number of hawkish immigration proposals during his campaign, including completing a wall on the southern border, reinstating the Remain in Mexico plan and increasing the number of Border Patrol agents. Ta. The president-elect also made other tougher campaign promises, including implementing “the largest deportation program in American history” and ending birthright citizenship for people born on U.S. soil to illegal immigrant parents.
So far, the White House transition team has appointed Tom Homan, acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as Border Patrol chief, and Stephen Miller as deputy chief of staff for policy and South Dakota. He has appointed immigration hardliners to key roles in his administration. Governor Kristi Noem will reportedly lead the Department of Homeland Security.
But a growing number of prominent Democratic governors, considered likely 2028 presidential candidates, have come forward to say they have no problem opposing the incoming administration’s immigration policies.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said his state remains a haven for illegal immigrants and vowed to take President Trump to court if the White House tries to withhold federal funds over the issue. Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey said her state police would “absolutely not cooperate” with President Trump’s mass deportation efforts, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom said his state police policies would “stand against Trump.” He called for a special session of the state Legislature.
Several Los Angeles City Council members introduced a proposal to grant the city sanctuary status long before the presidential election, but the bill languished in City Hall for more than a year. According to Los Angeles Times. The proposal, introduced by City Council members Nithya Raman, Hugo Sotomartínez and Eunice Hernandez, would prohibit city staff and resources from being used for federal immigration enforcement matters.
But questions remain about how much new sanctuary laws are needed in Los Angeles. In Los Angeles, many local law enforcement agencies already refuse to cooperate with federal immigration authorities, while state law already makes California a sanctuary for illegal immigrants.
Signed by then Mayor Eric Garcetti presidential order In March 2017, he pledged to stop local officials from assisting federal immigration officials. According to Garcetti’s instructions, the Los Angeles Police Department has refused to respond to requests for ICE detainees since 2014, and the department already had a long-standing policy of not asking individuals about their immigration status.
California has been a sanctuary state since January 2014. According to The Center for Immigration Studies (CIS) tracks sanctuary city laws across the country. The group cites the passing of a state law that allows memorials for ICE detainees only under limited circumstances.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles voters appear to be balking at crime mitigation policies, with Los Angeles County residents voting loudly to remove District Attorney George Gascón from office. Gascón, a far-left prosecutor who has enacted many pro-criminal policies, lost to independent candidate Nathan Hochman, who was seeking re-election.
Hochman, a former Republican and former prosecutor, has vowed to roll back many of Gascón’s liberal policies and take a tougher stance on crime. The next district attorney did not respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation on whether he supports the sanctuary city proposal.
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