The Trump administration argued that the issue was premature as funds were not withdrawn.
Federal judges advised the Trump administration not to use recent executive orders on so-called sanctuary jurisdictions, avoiding the blocks they have already placed in similar orders surrounding funds in those jurisdictions.
Sanctuary jurisdictions are municipalities that refuse to cooperate with the federal government in enforcing immigration laws.
The Justice Department responded by telling Orick on May 7 that it “suppressed the administrative department’s deliberation process on federal funding decisions and internal reviews on state and local government compliance with federal law.” The counties and cities added that Trump’s order was acting prematurely because “we wanted an assessment process and the funds were not affected.”
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Orick said identifying funds in a targeted manner would not violate his April injunction or the constitution. He said that this is a more drastic approach. More specifically, he said the government cannot target specific funds based on the fact that the sanctuary jurisdiction has received them. The administration was also unable to target all federal funds received by the sanctuary jurisdiction.
His comments came when Trump pursued multiple measures to bring both financial and legal consequences to the sanctuary jurisdiction.
His recent order, which came four days after Orick’s injunction, accused the state of “an outlaw riot over federal law hegemony and the federal government’s obligation to defend U.S. territorial sovereignty.”
Olik said these statements do not “stimulate confidence” that the administration simply identifies funds for the firing.
“President Trump’s actions, communications and expressions on sanctuary jurisdictions have made it entirely clear that his ultimate goal is their exclusion.
Under Trump’s more recent order, Attorney General Pam Bondy must work with Homeland Security Secretary Christy Noem to publish the list within 30 days and notify the jurisdiction of federal immigration law rebellion.
The other provisions directed two department heads to take steps to halt practices that support illegal immigration over Americans, ensuring that appropriate eligibility verifications are carried out for individuals receiving public federal benefits.
