President-elect Donald Trump and his administration hold broad powers over the District, including its police department, so will it be forced to enforce Trump’s promised immigration crackdown?
“I don’t think Congress is going to make us the INS,” D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said Monday, referring to the Immigration and Naturalization Service. The agency previously handled immigration and naturalization matters for over 90 years before the creation of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in 2003.
“That would come with a lot of money and a lot more officers,” Bowser said.
In an interview Saturday with NBC News’ Meet the Press, Trump said he would like to abolish birthright citizenship. He campaigned on launching mass deportation efforts to expel immigrants in the country illegally, and has said that could include deporting their children born in the U.S.
“I would say to our community that D.C. has never been involved in the enforcement of immigration laws,” Bowser said.
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While she said she didn’t think that would change, she added, “We have to be mindful of what is coming from the federal government.”
Under “extraordinary circumstances,” Bowser said, the law allows the U.S. president to “take over” D.C.’s police department. But she stressed that could happen only under certain conditions, such as an emergency declaration on a temporary basis.
“I don’t want to leave any D.C. resident with the impression that a wand could be raised and that would happen. It would require extraordinary circumstances and/or a challenge to very clear law,” she said.
Bowser said she has talked to representatives with the incoming administration about D.C. affairs, including public safety. Pressed on the issue, Bowser told reporters, “We enforce our own laws. We’ve never been responsible for enforcing immigration laws and that remains the case.”