The Department of Justice (DOJ) sounded the alarm that Virginia may become “the next California” as the Trump administration continues battling state resistance to immigration enforcement operations.
“We are suing Virginia to prevent Virginia from becoming the next sanctuary jurisdiction, just like California,” DOJ Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Brett Shumate told Fox News in an interview. “Under our Constitution, the states do not get to regulate or dictate how the federal government performs its duties, and that is especially the case when it comes to law enforcement. Virginia passed two bills in this newest session, one that restricts the ability of law enforcement officers to wear facial coverings and requires officers, federal agents, to wear identification badges.”
Shumate explained that because of the Supremacy Clause, “states do not get to regulate or discriminate against the federal government.”
“That’s exactly what Virginia has done. They have attempted to regulate how the federal goes about its business. They do not have the authority to do that under the Constitution,” he explained, adding that the DOJ will be filing “very quickly in the district Court in Virginia to seek an injunction to stop these laws from taking effect, which these laws have criminal penalties that put federal agents at risk, not only of criminal prosecution, but also at risk of doxing and harassment.”
The DOJ filed a lawsuit against Virginia earlier this month. At issue are two Virginia laws scheduled to take effect July 1. The first, Virginia Code Section 19.2-83.6:1, prohibits law enforcement officers, including federal agents, from wearing facial coverings while on duty and requires them to display visible identifying information. The second, Section 15.2-1726.1, imposes state-mandated conditions on federal immigration enforcement agreements, functionally blocking local agencies from maintaining so-called 287(g) cooperative agreements with federal immigration authorities.
