Game Changer: Trump Sending “Elite Tactical Units” Into Sanctuary Cities

The Trump administration is dramatically ramping up its war on sanctuary cities across the United States, launching lawsuits, subpoenas, and new enforcement mechanisms in an effort to mitigate the damage these jurisdictions do to our national security. As part of the approach, the administration is preparing to send a special unit of the Border Patrol into cities like Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Boston, and Atlanta to help ICE officials in the difficult mission of apprehending illegal aliens without local law enforcement support.

From The New York Times:

Lawrence Payne, a spokesman for Customs and Border Protection, confirmed that the agency was deploying 100 officers to work with ICE, which conducts arrests in the interior of the country, “in order to enhance the integrity of the immigration system, protect public safety, and strengthen our national security.”

The deployment of the teams will run from February through May, according to an email sent to C.B.P. personnel, which was read to The New York Times by one official familiar with the planning.

Among the agents being deployed to sanctuary cities are members of the elite tactical unit known as BORTAC, which acts essentially as the SWAT team of the Border Patrol. With additional gear such as stun grenades and enhanced Special Forces-type training, including sniper certification, the officers typically conduct high-risk operations targeting individuals who are known to be violent, many of them with extensive criminal records.

In sanctuary cities, the BORTAC agents will be asked to support interior officers in run-of-the-mill immigration arrests, the officials said. Their presence could spark new fear in immigrant communities that have been on high alert under the stepped-up deportation and detention policies adopted after Mr. Trump took office.

ICE’s acting director, Matthew Albence, released a statement saying that these initiatives are necessitated by cities and states who refuse to comply with federal law.

“As we have noted for years, in jurisdictions where we are not allowed to assume custody of aliens from jails, our officers are forced to make at-large arrests of criminal aliens who have been released into communities,” he said. “When sanctuary cities release these criminals back to the street, it increases the occurrence of preventable crimes, and more importantly, preventable victims.”

We’re sure we’ll see another round of lawsuits from the ACLU and La Raza and do-gooder liberals, and that’s all fine and well. We can’t think of anything better than an election built on a simple choice: Do we want to protect illegal aliens, or do we want to enforce the law and protect American citizens? We’re pretty sure we already won that debate once, but if the left wants another referendum, we’ll be more than happy to oblige.