A federal appeals court has ruled unanimously in the favor of the Trump administration, ruling that it can withhold grant money from sanctuary cities as a consequence of their lawless actions:
A federal appeals court on Wednesday ruled that the Department of Justice (DOJ) could withhold funding from cities and states that refuse to cooperate with the Trump administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.
A unanimous three-judge panel on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a district court judge’s ruling that the department lacked the authority to impose immigration-related conditions on certain funding.
The panel’s opinion, written by Judge Reena Raggi, found that Congress had delegated authority to the attorney general to set conditions on the federal grant program it had created, called the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program.
“Repeatedly and throughout its pronouncement of Byrne Program statutory requirements, Congress makes clear that a grant applicant demonstrates qualification by satisfying statutory requirements in such form and according to such rules as the Attorney General establishes,” wrote Raggi, who was appointed to the court by George W. Bush. “This confers considerable authority on the Attorney General.”
THE HILL
Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions made this announcement in 2017, that the DOJ would withhold funds from sanctuary cities. Seventeen states sued the DOJ in 2017 as a result of the announcement.
This federal appeals court clearly made the right decision. The DOJ should not be obligated to grant funds to lawless cities who put illegal immigration above the safety of their citizens.
As far as the judges, I can only know the name of the one judge who wrote the opinion. She is a W appointee. As far as the others, I’ll have to update when I get more information.
