In absolutely epic news from Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, Trump’s former defense attorney, serving as DOJ head pending the confirmation of Trump’s nominee for U.S. Attorney General, Pam Bondi, the DOJ will start investigating sanctuary cities and sanctuary states that are interfering with the Trump Administration’s deportation policy. That news came in the form of a letter sent by Mr. Bove.
The letter begins, “Following President Trump’s second inauguration yesterday, I write regarding interim decisions and policy changes pending confirmation of the Attorney General. These interim changes are necessary as an initial response to Executive Orders that President Trump issued yesterday, critical to the Justice Department’s mission, and part of the response to three of the most serious threats facing the American people.”
Continuing, it notes the escalating problems coming from illegal immigration, saying, “First, Cartels and other Transnational Criminal Organizations, such as Tren de Aragua (TdA) and La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), are a scourge on society resulting in an unstable and unsafe border and huge flows of illegal immigration in violation of U.S. law. Second, brutal and intolerable violent crime by members of these organizations and illegal aliens is escalating rapidly across the country. Third, the fentanyl crisis and opioid epidemic are poisoning our communities and have inflicted an unprecedented toll of addiction, suffering, and death.”
Then, getting to the matter of what the DOJ is doing, the letter made clear that it will not be stopped from doing its duty. It said, “The Justice Department must, and will, work to eradicate these threats. Indeed, it is the responsibility of the Justice Department to defend the Constitution and, accordingly, to lawfully execute the policies that the American people elected President Trump to implement.”
Continuing, it provided that all DOJ personnel must be on board with that, saying, “The Justice Department’s responsibility, proudly shouldered by each of its employees, includes aggressive enforcement of laws enacted by Congress, as well as vigorous defense of the President’s actions on behalf of the United States against legal challenges. The Department’s personnel must come together in the offices that taxpayers have funded to do this vitally important work.”
A bit later on, after noting the department will be taking a tougher line with the cartels, the letter got to the sanctuary city matter. It said, “Consistent with President Trump’s January 20, 2025 Executive Order entitled, “Protecting The American People Against Invasion,” the Department of Justice will take all steps necessary to protect the public and secure the American border by removing illegal aliens from the Country and prosecuting illegal aliens for crimes committed within U.S. jurisdiction.”
It then noted, “These steps shall include, but not be limited to, the following: Consistent with the core principle of pursuing the most serious, readily provable offense,” U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the other components shall pursue charges relating to criminal immigration-related violations when such violations are presented by federal, state, or local law enforcement or the Intelligence Community . . . Declination decisions relating to immigration-related conduct shall be disclosed as Urgent Reports pursuant to Justice Manual § 1-13.130. On a quarterly basis, the U.S. Attorney’s Offices shall report statistics to EOUSA, broken down by law enforcement agency, regarding the number of immigration-related cases referred to the Office, the number of pending immigration-related investigations and prosecutions, the number of immigration-related convictions, and the resulting sentences and removals.”
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And, concluding with the hugely important language about taking on sanctuary cities, the letter said, “Finally, laws and actions that threaten to impede Executive Branch immigration initiatives, including by prohibiting disclosures of information to federal authorities engaged in immigration-enforcement activities, threaten public safety and national security.”
That section continued, “The Civil Division shall work with the newly established Sanctuary Cities Enforcement Working Group, within the Office of the Associate Attorney General, to identify state and local laws, policies, and activities that are inconsistent with Executive Branch immigration initiatives and, where appropriate, to take legal action to challenge such laws.”
Watch warnings about what Pam Bondi will do the the sanctuary jurisdiction leadership here: