Sanctuary Cities Essay

1016 Words5 Pages

Sanctuary cities act as safe havens for many undocumented immigrants, but they are being regulated between the various levels of our federated government system. President Donald Trump did not waste any time and as he vowed to crack down on undocumented immigrants living in the United States, he took immediate action as soon as he was in office. As president of the U.S., Trump has executive powers granted by Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution, therefore he has the authority to execute an order from the executive branch about societal issues. Being that Trump has this power, he did not hesitate to sign an executive order about immigrants. Based on the article, “Sanctuary Fight Viewed as Having Limited Fiscal Impact on Cities” by Keeley …show more content…

The local governments in California have sanctuary cities in place and they are opposing the executive order, but by doing this they may not receive federal funds. The funds given to the local governments are received through a system called grants. The block grant, in particular, allows local governments to receive money from the federal government for the needs of the people. According to “What are Sanctuary Cities?” by Jasmine C. Lee “Trump's sanctuary order could affect as many as 500 counties, 40 cities, and seven states.” This forces California’s local governments to get stuck in a slippery slope problem because they need funds to regulate projects, but they also want to secure sanctuaries for undocumented immigrants. Keeley Webster, in her article “Sanctuary Fight Viewed as Having Limited Fiscal Impact on Cities,” states the implications for California "would be huge, as federal funds make up more than one-third of the state budget. The issue at hand is forcing California local governments to have their backs against the wall in a tight situation. Along with the state government of California, they have joined forces to hold a stance against the federal government. The funding doesn’t prevent the issue, it’s just a tactic trump is using at the moment to fulfill his campaign …show more content…

One side is from federal government wanting to make it their duty to protect the nation from crime and undocumented immigrants. The federal government objective is to get rid of sanctuary cities, and they have made many efforts to do this, specifically by holding back on the block grant. The other side is from some members from the local and state governments wanting to aid undocumented immigrants, and have sanctuary cities where they could stand up for the civil liberties of many citizens. Civil liberties are rights given to citizens, such as freedom of speech granted by the bill of