DOJ sues Virginia over anti-ICE policies as key anti-terror tool nears expiration
The Justice Department is escalating its fight over state and local limits on federal immigration enforcement, filing suit against Virginia over newly adopted anti-ICE measures that include a disputed ban on masks for federal agents. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has argued that such restrictions put federal officers at risk. At the same time, Washington is facing another national security flashpoint, with a key anti-terrorism surveillance authority under FISA set to expire amid congressional gridlock. Shannon Bream and Jim Jordan weighed in on the political impasse and what could follow if lawmakers fail to act.
In a related legal battle, a federal judge on Thursday temporarily barred Philadelphia from enforcing a law that would have limited how federal officers use masks, conceal identification and operate unmarked vehicles.
U.S. District Judge Chad Kenney issued a preliminary injunction before the restrictions were scheduled to take effect Tuesday, blocking the city from applying the measure to federal officers.
Kenney sided with the Justice Department, which sued last month and described the ordinance as a “blatantly unconstitutional” effort to dictate how federal agents conduct official operations.
“When the Philadelphia City Council voted to pass Bill No. 260060 … it attempted to sidestep the Constitution’s clear mandate and disregarded this fundamental principle of law that has informed American jurisprudence for over 200 years,” Kenney wrote. He pointed to the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause, which gives federal law priority over state and local measures when they conflict.
A federal judge temporarily blocked a Philadelphia law that barred federal officers from wearing masks while on duty. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Kenney warned that accepting Philadelphia’s argument would open the door for municipalities to set their own rules over “how, when, where, and whether federal law enforcement officers can conceal their identities.”
Philadelphia approved the mask restriction earlier this year as part of a broader City Council package, passed during a national debate over masked immigration agents conducting raids in communities across the country. The controversy has intensified amid reports of agents shooting people during enforcement actions, including two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis in January.
The measure applied to local, state and federal law enforcement officers, but Thursday’s injunction blocked Philadelphia from enforcing it against federal officers. The statute would ban covered officers from wearing masks or shielding their identities while on duty and interacting with the public, with exceptions including medical masks, religious coverings, certain tactical equipment and hazardous conditions. They would also be required to wear visible badges and use marked vehicles in certain circumstances.
The statute would ban federal officers from wearing masks or shielding their identities. They would also be required to wear visible badges and use marked vehicles.
Officers could be subject to civil and criminal penalties under the ordinance.
“This type of direct regulation of the federal government by a municipality is blatantly impermissible,” Kenney wrote.
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Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, a Democrat, declined to sign the bill, saying the city solicitor’s office informed her it presented significant legal problems.
The judge ruled that the city cannot determine how federal officers conduct operations. (Getty Images)
Kenney wrote that Parker “acted with civic wisdom and courage to stand up for the Constitution and follow the rule of law where it led” by not signing the measure.
But the bill was not vetoed and became law in May after Parker allowed it to take effect without her signature.
News Agency reached out to the city for comment on Thursday’s ruling.
In a statement to Reuters, the Justice Department praised the court’s ruling and said the department “will keep fighting jurisdictions that try to obstruct President Trump’s immigration enforcement with policies that endanger agents and public safety.”
News Agency reached out to the Justice Department for comment.
The Justice Department sued argued the measure was a “blatantly unconstitutional” attempt to regulate federal agents. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy, File)
This is just the latest in ongoing legal fights between the Trump administration and state and local governments that have attempted to adopt mask bans or identification requirements affecting federal officers.
On Tuesday, a federal judge blocked a new law in Virginia barring federal law enforcement from wearing masks.
In February, a federal judge halted a California law that prohibited federal officers from wearing masks while on duty.
The Justice Department also sued New Jersey to block a similar mask ban targeting federal officers.
