Texas One-Ups Trump, Vows Jail for Sanctuary City Officials
- State sues immigration advocacy groups in preemptive strike
- Governor says officials don’t get to ‘pick’ which laws to obey
An American flag flies with the Texas state flag outside the Texas State Capitol building in Austin on March 14, 2017.
Photographer: David Paul Morris/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Texas kicked off a court battle in giving itself power to jail local officials who provide safe harbor for undocumented immigrants, which goes further than President Donald Trump in his attempt to punish sanctuary cities.
The day after Republican Governor Greg Abbott signed a law making it a criminal offense for sheriffs and police chiefs to resist cooperating with U.S. immigration officials, the state sued the city of Austin to enforce the new policy. The lawsuit is a preemptive strike against advocacy groups that have pledged legal challenges against the measure.