Speech #CREC-2017-06-29-pt1-PgH5316_t51

I am here as a local government person. I spent 14 years in local government. We are not sanctuary cities. We are trying to solve crimes by seeking cooperation from the immigrant community. This bill will make it harder. Most of our local police chiefs would tell you that--if you would listen to them. Oddly enough, the Members supporting this bill are the same Members who sanctimoniously decry Federal mandates and overreach--except when they want one. Here we are, dictating how local governments should implement Federal immigration laws. At the local level, we know effective, community-based policing relies on trust between the police and communities. This bill would erode that collaboration and that trust. How can we expect our Nation's immigrants to turn to the police if they witness or fall victim to a crime if they are afraid of being deported or separated from their families? The bill will punish local police departments and those relationships. It should be defeated.