Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) said the state of California was prepared to spend taxpayer dollars on migrants in need of “legal assistance, legal advice, legal support” because of “threats” under President-elect Trump's administration.
“If the first Trump administration is any indicator, we know that there will continue to be a lot of fear in communities and communities that deserve to know what their rights are and what their rights are [and] are not,” Padilla said on CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday.
“That’s just the California way. We embrace our diversity. Our diversity is what has made our communities thrive and our economy thrive. And so we will assist families against the threats of the Trump administration.”
Trump made mass deportations of illegal migrants one of his central campaign pledges, a push that could heavily impact California.
"Nobody disagrees with a focus on violent criminals,” Padilla added. "Democrats, Republicans agree. But that’s very different than millions and millions of people being deported indiscriminately, not just tearing families apart, tearing communities apart but tremendous damage to our economy that that would create.
Padilla also told "Face the Nation" that California law enforcement has “no obligation” to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with deportation or identification processes.
“Let the federal government do the federal government’s job, but have state and local officials do the state and local officials’ job,” he said. “There doesn’t have to be a conflict unless that’s what Trump wants.”
Trump’s pick for “border czar,” Tom Homan, has promised to cut federal funding to states that obstruct the administration's deportation plans, and has threatened legal consequences for officials who stand in the way.
“I’ll say this: President Trump has made it clear, we’re going to prioritize public safety threats and national security threats right out of the gate [because] they pose the most danger to this country. What governor or mayor doesn’t want public safety threats and national security threats out of their neighborhoods, out of their communities?” Homan told Fox News’s Mark Levin earlier this month.
“That’s their number one responsibility. So you can hate Trump all you want, but you gotta love your community more than you hate President Trump,” he added.
