The US Department of Justice is ramping up its effort to go after state and local officials who refuse to help with Trump's immigration crackdown. In a recent memo, the acting deputy attorney general, Emil Bove, instructed federal prosecutors across the country to investigate and potentially charge officials from 'sanctuary' cities for assisting undocumented immigrants or not sharing information with federal authorities.

Bove, who used to be Trump's defense lawyer, wrote that federal law blocks local and state entities from disobeying lawful immigration commands. A new working group has been set up to find local laws that hinder Trump's immigration policies, and the civil division is ready to challenge these in court.

This tough stance will quickly clash with cities like Chicago, which recently limited its cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice). Some sanctuary cities only transfer serious criminals to Ice, arguing that widespread deportations cause community instability and discourage immigrants from reporting crimes.

Trump’s directive follows his pledge to launch a massive domestic deportation operation, backed by executive orders involving multiple federal agencies, including the defense department. He also plans to send over a hundred law enforcement officers to Chicago.

The Department of Justice's directive is part of a larger set of planned immigration actions. These include an attempt to end birthright citizenship for children of immigrants and asylum seekers, a move that could face scrutiny from the supreme court. This is a stark shift from Joe Biden's efforts to provide a path to citizenship for some of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the US. Trump's new orders could potentially target all of them for removal.

US to Prosecute Mayors Who Resist Deportations

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