Mayor Bass responds after Trump administration sues LA over sanctuary city policies

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- One day after the Trump Administration sued the city of Los Angeles, challenging the constitutionality of its "sanctuary city'' policies, Mayor Karen Bass said Tuesday the legal action is part of an "all-out assault against Los Angeles'' by the federal government, but she "won't be intimidated by these tactics.''

"I will always protect Angelenos against the unwarranted and cruel actions of this administration,'' Bass said during a downtown news conference.

Bass pointed out that the vast majority of people detained by federal agents had no criminal history. The mayor brought in leaders from the building trade, who say the raids are amplifying Southern California's housing crisis by targeting construction sites.

"These workers were profiled simply because of how they look and where they work. That is not law enforcement. That is intimidation," said Ernesto Medrano.

Bass said the city "will stand strong and we will stand together.''

She said the lawsuit filed Monday is an "attempt to overturn the will of the city, calling for a halt to long-standing policy to protect immigrant Angelenos.''

"We will defend our ordinance and continue to defend policies that reflect the long-standing values of our city,'' Bass said. "I think they want the chaos. I think we're the Petri dish for the nation -- will the American public tolerate Marines driving up and down the street?"

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Tuesday responded to the Mayor's criticism with a written statement through its ICE Office of Public Affairs Assistant Director Emily Covington:

"ICE isn't going anywhere and will continue to do what Mayor Bass has utterly failed to do - protect the citizens of Los Angeles. If she wants distance from federal law enforcement, I'm sure there is an upcoming diplomatic trip to Ghana."

That's referring to where the mayor was when wildfires ravaged Southern California in January.

Dealing with the Trump Administration isn't cheap. Mayor Bass said that in the week after the raids started, the city spent $30 million on LAPD overtime and other expenses.

Now, additional money and time are being spent defending the city against the federal lawsuit and several investigations launched by Republicans.

In its lawsuit, the U.S. Department of Justice alleges that Los Angeles' sanctuary-city policies violate the Constitution by "thwarting" immigration enforcement.

The lawsuit contends that the sanctuary laws -- in which local law enforcement officials refuse to assist immigration enforcement efforts -- are illegal, and expressly designed to "obstruct the federal government's enforcement of federal immigration law and impede consultation and communication between federal, state, and local law enforcement officials that is necessary for federal officials to carry out federal immigration law and keep Americans safe."

According to the federal government, then-candidate Donald J. Trump campaigned and won the presidential election in 2024 "on a platform of deporting the millions of illegal immigrants the previous administration permitted, through its open borders policy, to enter the country unlawfully.

"Days after now President Trump won the Nov. 5, 2024, election, the Los Angeles City Council, wishing to thwart the will of the American people regarding deportations, began the process of codifying into law its sanctuary city policies."

The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office issued a statement Monday saying, "The city of Los Angeles ordinance limiting the use of city resources for federal immigration enforcement was carefully drafted and fully complies with federal law and constitutional principles. The Constitution and federal law both allow the federal government to regulate immigration, but the reserved power of the state and the people, including under the Tenth Amendment, ensures our ability to defend the constitutionality of our ordinances and policies."

In her remarks Tuesday, Bass said federal agents need to get out of the city and noted that the original intent of the sanctuary city policies was to boost public safety, "so the newly arrived immigrant population that was being preyed on by criminals would feel safe" reporting crimes to police.

CNS contributed to this report.