Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey follows several sanctuary city mayors rebelling against President Donald Trump
Tom Homan shuts down rumors ICE went to a school: Put fear in the community
Border Czar Tom Homan joins America Reports to discuss immigration enforcement efforts under President Donald Trumps administration.
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey emphasized Monday that his administration would not be working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to arrest illegal immigrants.
Speaking to the Pennsylvania Press Club Monday, Gainey said, "I am not going to be working with ICE. My administration will not work with ICE. We will do whatever is necessary to make our city more welcoming."
When asked, Gainey attacked ICE, claiming that it would not solve the ongoing immigration crisis.
"ICE is not going to end the situation of a failed immigration policy. It’s not going to do it," Gainey said. "What it is going to do is create more situations where people feel scared. Where people don’t feel safe. Where people do things they normally wouldn’t do."
MAYORS, LOCAL OFFICIALS COULD FACE ARREST IF THEY DON'T COMPLY WITH TRUMP'S MASS DEPORTATIONS
Several sanctuary city leaders have said they would not work with the Trump administration on deportations. (ICE)
Instead, he encouraged pathways to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
"Change it through the legislation," Gainey said. "We know what needs to happen. Where’s the appetite to do it right?"
Gainey made similar comments to CBS News Pittsburgh on Wednesday where he discussed working with local nonprofit organizations to assist people after President Donald Trump enacted several executive orders on immigration.
"We want to make sure that when immigrants are here they feel welcome. We want to make sure that they know we want to provide services for them," Gainey said.
He also added that he did not believe that Pittsburgh police officers would be working with ICE officials in the near future.
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey said he and his city would not work with ICE officials. (Photo by Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images | David Maxwell/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"We don't want no hate, we don't want no division, we don't want no evil, we want to make sure we're creating a city where everybody feels welcome," Gainey said.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Gainey's office added, "Currently, the City of Pittsburgh has no evidence of ICE activity occurring within city limits and has not been asked to assist the agency in any way. ICE is a federal law enforcement agency that works outside of City control. Public Safety and the Bureau of Police will adhere to Bureau policies."
Gainey follows several sanctuary city mayors pushing back on Trump’s efforts to crack down on illegal immigrants. Denver Mayor Mike Johnston, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu have all said they would either refuse to work with ICE on deportations or outright resist ICE efforts in their cities.
Not all Democratic mayors have attacked Trump’s calls for more deportations, however. New York City Mayor Eric Adams said last week that there would be full cooperation between NYPD officers and ICE.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said his administration has been coordinating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with regard to deporting illegal criminal migrants. (Luiz C. Ribeiro/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images and Selcuk Acar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
"There's no restrictions. Nothing has changed there. We're going to continue to collaborate with all of our federal partners when it comes down to illegal behaviors," Adams said. "I was very clear for almost a year and a half now, those who commit violent crimes in our city have violated their right to be in our city and in our country, and we're going to continue to collaborate with those around criminality."
Lindsay Kornick is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to
