California Leaders Opposed to Sanctuary Law to Meet With Trump
SANTA ANA (CNS) - Orange County Supervisor Michelle Steel and Deputy Sheriff Ray Grangoff will be among more than a dozen Golden State officials meeting with President Donald Trump today to discuss their opposition to California's sanctuary-state law.
The group making the trek to Washington, D.C., includes leaders from Orange, Riverside and San Diego counties. Los Alamitos Mayor Troy Edgar, whose city's move to officially oppose the law sparked other conservative-leaning cities and municipalities to do the same, is also expected to attend.
In March, Los Alamitos approved an ordinance claiming an exemption from Senate Bill 54, which limits cooperation by local and state law enforcement with federal immigration authorities. Other cities voting to oppose the state law by either filing amicus briefs supporting the federal lawsuit challenging provisions of the California Values Act or joining the federal government's suit include Newport Beach, Orange, Huntington Beach, Mission Viejo, Aliso Viejo, Fountain Valley, San Juan Capistrano and Yorba Linda.
"On Wednesday, President Trump will meet with California leaders and public officials who oppose California's illegal and unconstitutional sanctuary policies that release criminal illegal aliens into public communities,'' a White House official said. "They will discuss shared efforts to end the nullification of federal law and restore community safety.''
Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Department of Homeland Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Thomas Homan are also expected to attend the meeting, according to the White House.
After the Los Alamitos ordinance was approved, the American Civil Liberties Union sued the city in April.
"The ordinance thus authorizes local police officers and school officials, as well as other local officials, to disregard the terms of the Values Act and collaborate with immigration authorities,'' according to the lawsuit. "It is black-letter law that a locality cannot enact an ordinance that conflicts with state law -- let alone one that, on its face, authorizes
local officials to violate state law. A local ordinance is preempted by state law, and therefore invalid, when it 'duplicates, contradicts or enters an area fully occupied by general law, either expressly or by legislative
implication.'''
Edgar said at the time that he voted for the ordinance because of public safety issues, and not because he is opposed to immigration.
"This is not about immigration,'' he said. "This is about criminal illegal immigrants in the country and trying to keep them out of our communities.''
California leaders expected to attend the meeting with Trump are:
-- House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield;
-- Assemblywoman Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore;
-- Councilwoman Pam Patterson, of San Juan Capistrano;
-- Edgar, city of Los Alamitos;
-- Mayor Julie Hackbarth-McIntyre, Barstow;
-- Mayor Natasha Johnson, Lake Elsinore;
-- Mayor Elaine Gennawey, Laguna Niguel;
-- Mayor Crystal Ruiz, San Jacinto;
-- Mayor Sam Abed, Escondido ;
-- Mayor Pro Tem Warren Kusumoto, Los Alamitos;
-- Sheriff Adam Christianson, Stanislaus County ;
-- Sheriff Margaret Mims, Fresno County;
-- Steel, Orange County;
-- Supervisor Kristin Gaspar, San Diego County;
-- Grangoff, Orange County; and
-- District Attorney Stacey Montgomery, Lassen County.
Eds: The meeting is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. PST.