Senators again ask DHS for response on Cook County, IL, immigration ordinance

Cook County courthouse

A group of U.S. Senators asked DHS to reconcile its approach to immigration enforcement in light of Cook County, Illinois’ refusal to enforce federal detention requests there.

Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and a group of senators sent a letter on Jan. 30 to DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder pressing them on the Obama administration’s “controversial policy to sue states for passing immigration laws to protect their citizens while turning a blind eye to jurisdictions that actively promote safe harbor immigration policies, like Cook County…” The group had asked similar questions of DHS in a November letter.

The county voted in September not to enforce requests from federal authorities to detain illegal immigrants unless the federal government paid detention costs up-front. The State of Illinois has been stubborn on other immigration policies as well. Last May, Illinois governor Pat Quinn told Immigration and Customs Enforcement that his state was moving to end its participation in the ICE’s Secure Communities biometric identification program. Quinn’s May 4 letter to ICE included a notice from Illinois State Police Director Hiram Grau that said the program was being used contrary to its stated purposes.

Grassley’s letter to Napolitano and Holder, however, was concerned about the Cook County ordinance that he said has cost millions in federal dollars and runs counter to federal law. The letter asked about millions of dollars in reimbursement Cook County had received from the federal government to process criminal aliens. The senators said the county shouldn’t “be rewarded with federal taxpayer dollars for defying federal immigration authorities and putting public safety at risk.”  They said it had been reimbursed with nearly $8 million through the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program in fiscal 2009 and 2010. 

The letter, co-signed by Sens. David Vitter (R-LA), Tom Coburn (R-OK),  Mike Johanns (R-NE), John Cornyn (R-TX), Jim DeMint (R-SC), Jeff Sessions (R-AL) Alabama and Jon Kyl (R-AZ), said they were “encouraged” by ICE Director John Morton’s Jan. 4 letter to the county expressing concern over the new ordinance, but said they remained “extremely concerned” the county wouldn’t honor 268 outstanding ICE detainer requests for criminal aliens. They said the ordinance “undermines public safety and hinders ICE’s ability to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.” They also said the ordinance violates federal law, noting “it is ironic and frustrating that the Administration has filed suit against several states for passing laws that aim to protect their citizens and help enforce immigration law while essentially turning a blind eye to jurisdictions that actively promote safe harbor practices.”