An Iowa sheriff is warning that his county may be publicly shamed by the Trump administration for insufficiently backing the president’s immigration agenda, though he says he is “more than happy” to help. He said he just wants to ensure he doesn’t end up with too few officers, jail beds and dollars to respond to the county’s needs.
Dubuque County Sheriff Joe Kennedy, who serves nearly 100,000 people in the area bordering Wisconsin and Illinois, seemed to try not to alienate the federal government when he declined to participate in a program that would commit county revenue and jail space to immigration enforcement. He explained his decision before a packed county chamber this week, drawing mixed reactions.
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“It has generally been my experience that when we partner with larger entities (Federal, state), those agencies usually ‘take’ more than they ‘give.’ Essentially, we usually end up with the short end of the stick in some way,” he wrote.
Kennedy said he would be “more than happy to assist your agents in our area” but asked ICE not to rely on his 181-bed jail because he doesn’t have room.
David Bindert, an official in ICE’s Cedar Rapids, Iowa, office, was sympathetic in his brief response: “No worries Sir, I completely understand, and I thank you for your time in this matter.”
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An Iowa law prohibits state and local officials from adopting policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Attorney General Brenna Bird recently sued the Winneshiek County sheriff over a Facebook post that she said discouraged cooperation, potentially jeopardizing state funding to the county.
The Trump administration has also taken legal action against governments with policies limiting immigration arrests, suing Chicago, Denver and Rochester, New York.