Most Americans think of the Civil War as an unambiguous conflict between the North and the South over slavery, and that is generally accurate. It was an insurrection against the federal government committed by 11 states whose Democrat governors and legislators feared that the recently elected Republican president, Abraham Lincoln, would deprive them of their non-citizen labor force. These state officials vowed to resist any attempt by the federal government to put down the insurrection and routinely denounced the new president as an aspiring dictator.
Hochul, Pritzker and Walz are typical of sanctuary state governors, and the Democrat Party as a whole. They clearly couldn’t care less about their constituents.
Why does all this sound so familiar?
Perhaps because 11 states have declared themselves “sanctuary jurisdictions” and openly defy federal law in order to “protect” their non-citizen labor force. Not coincidentally, the Democrat governors of these states routinely denounce our current GOP president, Donald Trump, as a dictator. Recently, for example, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California accused him of “militarizing cities” and insisted: “These are the acts of a dictator, not a President.” Not to be outdone, Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois recently likened Trump to a dictator. Similar statements have been made by all of the sanctuary state governors.
If you are thinking that absurd claims that President Trump is a dictator don’t mean these people are part of some organized confederacy whose raison d’être includes resistance to Trump’s immigration policies and obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws, you’re right. But wait. To coin a phrase, there’s more: A document obtained by the Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project reveals a pact among twenty-two blue states and two sanctuary cities, pledged to collectively prepare “potential litigation” challenging any effort to curtail birthright citizenship. It was ready for signature by November 8, 2024.
This agreement, just 3 days after President Trump’s landslide election win, shows that these resistance actors began, as a matter of absolute urgent top priority, plotting their resistance to President Trump’s anticipated actions … Their top priority was not gas, groceries, public safety, or any other matter of concern of their constituents, but instead a raw political calculus to ensure that the future children of the illegal aliens that entered during the Biden Border Crisis could turn into voters.
Obviously, in the absence of so-called birthright citizenship, the incentives that drive illegal immigration would be dramatically reduced. Consequently, President Trump issued an executive order limiting birthright citizenship on Jan. 20, 2025. Shortly thereafter, the Birthright Citizenship Act of 2025 was introduced by Rep. Brian Babin (R-Tex.) in the House of Representatives. Both Trump’s executive order and the House legislation would limit birthright citizenship to the children of U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents of the U.S. and lawful immigrants performing active service in the Armed Forces.
An army of Democrat lawyers attacked the President’s executive order in court, which inevitably produced nationwide injunctions temporarily halting implementation. The Trump DOJ filed an emergency appeal with SCOTUS, where oral arguments were heard on May 15 concerning the abusive use of nationwide injunctions by district courts. The Trump administration is likely to win on that issue, which will deprive sanctuary states of an important weapon in their legal arsenal. Meanwhile, three sanctuary state governors were dragged before Congress to explain why they have brazenly ignored federal immigration laws:
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform held a full committee hearing today titled, “A Hearing with Sanctuary State Governors.” At the hearing, Republican members publicly questioned and held accountable Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, and New York Governor Kathy Hochul for their sanctuary policies … the sanctuary governors refused to condemn their states’ reckless policies when confronted with the devastating costs.
In one particularly revealing exchange, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) peppered Gov. Hochul about the results of her state’s lethal “Green Light Law.” Rep. Stefanik asked the Empire State’s governor if she was familiar with the name, Sebastian Zapita Khalil and what crime he had committed. Hochul was typically clueless, so Stefanik enlightened her: “He found a sleeping woman on the subway, lit her on fire, and burned her alive … ICE had issued an order to detain this violent criminal, but that was rejected by New York officials, due to sanctuary state laws.” Hochul responded like the proverbial deer in the headlights.
Govs. Pritzker and Walz weren’t quite as clueless as Hochul—who could be—but they ducked every question they were asked. Rep. Tom Emmer (R. Minn.) pointed out that Minnesota Gov. Walz signed bills providing free healthcare and college tuition to illegal aliens. Walz shrugged. Rep. Brandon Gill (R-Texas) pointed out to Illinois Gov. Pritzker that his administration funded a local group called “Organized Communities Against Deportations.” Pritzker didn’t say anything, but his expression suggested that he was thinking, “So, what?” Both Walz and Pritzker are reported to have presidential aspirations. Think about that.
Hochul, Pritzker and Walz are typical of sanctuary state governors, and the Democrat Party as a whole. They clearly couldn’t care less about their constituents—the vast majority of whom favor Trump’s border policies and deportation of illegal immigrants. Their response to the voters? “Trump is a dictator.” “Non-citizen is a synonym for Democrat voter.” They are no less dangerous than the Democrats who incited a genuine insurrection 165 years ago, and if they are let off their collective leash, they will wreak just as much havoc.
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