Immigration advocates vow to fight Trump deportation plans

Immigration advocates say they’ve already been preparing for President-elect Donald Trump’s pledge to ramp up deportations once he returns to the White House.

“We anticipate that they’re going to be very quick, very rapid, very massive efforts to grab as many people as possible and deport them,” National Immigration Law Center President Kica Matos said during a rally outside the Capitol on Monday.

Matos said hers and other organizations began considering possible actions earlier this year in case Trump won.

Now, Trump is promising to deliver on his campaign pledge, taking to his Truth Social platform earlier in the morning to confirm he plans to declare a national emergency.

He also intends to try and use the military to support his deportation effort, his post confirmed.

Advocates said they’re trying to assume undocumented immigrants in Connecticut that their organizations will offer support.

“If families have to be separated, it defeats the point completely because people are trying to get to the United States to be with their families,” said Tabitha Sookdeo, executive director of CT Students For a Dream.

Sookdeo said her family came from Guyana when she was a teenager and her grandmother, who was a U.S. citizen, was trying to help them also get permanent legal status.

Her grandmother died during the process, though, leaving Sookdeo’s family in limbo.

“Immigration is pretty complicated,” she said.

Democrats, meanwhile, said they won’t support federal deportation efforts.

Attorney General William Tong (D) pointed to the state’s Trust Act, which bars local and state agencies from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement efforts.

“Connecticut is going to care for our immigrant families and immigrant neighbors and friends,” Tong said.

There are some exceptions, including when an undocumented immigrant is convicted of a Class A or Class B felony. Tong wouldn’t say if that means Connecticut has to notify federal authorities of such a conviction.

“I’m not going to issue a legal opinion on the fly from this podium,” Tong said.

Connecticut Republicans were critical of Democrats, though, saying their policies don’t reflect what voters want.

Rep. Vincent Candelora (R-Minority Leader) said Connecticut spends too much money supporting undocumented immigrants, including with Medicaid, education and other assistance.

He also said voters are worried about public safety.

“It’s really out of step, I think, with what the residents and America wants, and that is, you know, safe borders, public safety and we have to get the cost of immigration under control,” Candelora said.