Republicans in Texas have been trying for years to get tough on illegal immigration from over the country’s southern border with Mexico. With the election of Donald Trump to the Presidency, many feel the time may finally be right for the Republican Party to take on the so-called ‘sanctuary cities’.
Greg Abbott, the Governor of Texas, has brought the issue into the spotlight again as part of his unofficial 2017 agenda. He promises, on social media, and in interviews, to make a law banning local governments and cities that protect undocumented immigrants and punish them with cuts to state funding if they do not comply. Previous Republican majority legislatures and Governors have made similar promises but were unable to make them into law in Texas. But, Lubbock Republican, Charles Perry who, for many years, has tried to pass a similar ban, says that the tide of political opinion is changing and he has already filed a new bill for the January session.
Perry says that the recent election shows Americans want a solution to the illegal immigration crisis to become a priority and that doing so should begin with enforcing current immigration laws, securing the border, and eliminating sanctuary cities.
Civil rights activists claim that no city in Texas has any formal sanctuary policies anyway, unlike several other cities in the US, such as Chicago, Seattle, and New York. They believe that Latinos could be targeted by police if a sanctuary city ban goes ahead.