The attorney argued that Trump's crackdown on sanctuary cities creates an environment of 'fear,' where people are slow to report migrant crime
San Francisco city attorney claims Trump illegal immigration crackdown makes US 'less safe'
A San Francisco lawyer who filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s crackdown on sanctuary cities argued that President Trump’s polices regarding immigration make Americans "less safe."
A San Francisco lawyer who filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s crackdown on sanctuary cities argued that President Trump’s polices regarding immigration make Americans "less safe."
In an interview with CNN on Wednesday, San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu announced his lawsuit against the Trump administration's immigration crackdown – filed on behalf of San Francisco officials and those in other sanctuary cities across America. He also defended sanctuary city policies, saying they make America safer, while stating that Trump’s attempts to punish these cities do the opposite.
"So let me just take a moment and explain what sanctuary policies are about. When communities trust law enforcement, victims and witnesses of crime come forward, arrests are made, criminals are taken off the streets. When the opposite happens, trust is eroded. People are fearful to report. We are all less safe."
San Francisco City attorney David Chiu talks about his lawsuit against the Trump administration's sanctuary city policies. (Screenshot/CNN)
The attorney told CNN anchor Kate Bolduan that since Inauguration Day 2025, the Trump administration has "doubled down" on its attempts to slash federal funding from sanctuary cities that it had implemented in its first term.
President Trump has also ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials to make criminal arrests in left-leaning "sanctuary" cities, including Philadelphia, Boston, Denver and Washington, D.C., since getting into office.
Chiu mentioned how his city sued against this crackdown during Trump’s first term successfully, noting how "federal district courts" and "appellate courts ruled in our favor" and is now having this fight all over again.
The attorney continued, "They’re trying to commandeer our local law enforcement as ICE agents. They’re threatening to investigate and prosecute public officials and go after sanctuary cities and states. This isn‘t an idle threat."
When asked what the lawsuit specifically targets, Chiu stated it’s "certainly the threat" of the federal government enforcing anti-illegal immigration policy in San Francisco and the other sanctuary cities that are represented in the lawsuit.
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ICE agents arrested seven illegal immigrants during a workforce operation raid. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
In response to Bolduan’s question about whether he is getting in the way of the Trump team "doing its job," Chiu laid out how the administration is spreading "lies" about what these cities are doing.
"Studies have consistently shown that immigrants commit less crimes, that sanctuary jurisdictions have seen no increase or lower crime rates," the lawyer said. "Now, unfortunately, the Trump Administration has spread lies about the suggestion that our cities are harboring criminals. That is false."
Though, Fox News contributor Jason Rantz argued last year, these and similar arguments are liberals deflecting "attention from the alarming reality that illegal immigrants are committing crimes in American cities coast to coast."
"No one is arguing that illegal immigrants commit more crimes than Americans (unless you count their unlawful entry, of course). The issue is that they commit crimes at all while being in the country illegally. These crimes wouldn't occur if our border security was effective," Rantz wrote.
Gabriel Hays is an associate editor for Fox News Digital.
