Congressional Rep. Andy Harris yesterday said he disagrees with Queen Anne’s County and Talbot County being listed by the Trump Administration as sanctuary jurisdictions.
Harris said in a statement, “Although there are Maryland counties that unfortunately consider themselves sanctuary jurisdictions, Queen Anne’s and Talbot certainly are not.”
This comes as the latest turn since Talbot and Queen Anne officials rejected allegations in last Friday’s announcement by the Department of Homeland Security that listed Talbot and Queen Annes among 500 so-called “sanctuary areas” across the United States. The Trump Administration alleged the localities were hiding fugitive immigrants, passing laws to shield the undocumented and interfering with federal agents arresting them.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a DHS press release about the list of jurisdictions that the department is “exposing these sanctuary politicians who harbor criminal illegal aliens and defy federal law.”
“These sanctuary city politicians are endangering Americans and our law enforcement in order to protect violent criminal illegal aliens,” Noem said.
Talbot County said it received no communication from the federal government that it wasn’t complying with federal immigration laws in advance of the list being published.
“We have, and will continue to, follow all applicable federal laws and have not taken any deliberate actions to obstruct their enforcement,” a statement from a Talbot County spokesperson read.
“We welcome further information and guidance from the federal government so we can address any pertinent issues,” the statement added.
Queen Annes County Commissioner James Moran said Queen Anne's was falsely listed last year as a sanctuary jurisdiction by the America First Legal Foundation, which was then referenced by Homeland Security, despite the county's strong Republican voting record and lack of policies supporting illegal immigration.
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