(NewsNation) — Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is trying to expedite a sanctuary city ordinance, pushing back against President-elect Donald Trump’s mass deportation plans.
The ordinance would prohibit the use of city resources for federal immigration enforcement. It could also mean potential legal battles as the Trump administration prepares to use ICE and the military to carry out the campaign promise of mass deportations.
An estimated 1.8 million undocumented immigrants live in California, more than any other state, with nearly a million in Los Angeles County.
The ordinance is widely expected to pass. Critics point out that sanctuary city status was not something ever decided on by voters.
“If they’re going to stay on these silly things like sanctuary cities, all they’re going to do is accelerate their own demise,” Los Angeles County GOP chair, Tim O’Reilly told NewsNation.
Advocates argue many of the people who entered the country illegally are now hard-working members of American society and deserve protection.