The United States Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against Chicago and Illinois for allegedly getting in the way of federal efforts to enforce immigration laws.
According to CNN, the Trump administration on Thursday, February 6, 2025, sued the officials of Illinois, Chicago, and Cook County over the policies that are obstructing the federal government immigration crackdown.
The lawsuit states, “The challenged provisions of Illinois, Chicago, and Cook County law have the purpose and effect of making it more difficult for, and deliberately impeding, federal immigration officers’ ability to carry out their responsibilities in those jurisdictions.”
“The Supremacy Clause prohibits Illinois, Chicago, Cook County, and their officials from obstructing the federal government’s ability to enforce laws that Congress has enacted or to take actions entrusted to it by the Constitution.”
The Justice Department has asked a federal judge to temporarily block the laws and declare them unconstitutional.
Moreover, this is the first major challenge from Republican President Donald Trump against Democratic-led cities and states that have refused to enforce federal government civil immigration laws.
The Trump administration's border czar, Tom Homan, told reporters at the White House on Thursday that "sanctuary cities are sanctuaries for criminals. We're going to hold them accountable and take them to court.”
Meanwhile, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, in an interview with NPR in January, made it clear that the city is “firm” in its policies. “Whether you're undocumented, whether you are seeking asylum, or whether you're seeking a good-paying job, we're going to fight and stand up for the working people."
Notably, Trump officials have been critical of these sanctuary policies and have often pointed out Chicago, where they recently carried out an immigration enforcement operation.
