❗ Trump declares state of emergency at Southern Border
❗ NJ is home to 2.2 million immigrants
❗ Gov. Murphy declared NJ a ‘sanctuary state’

A showdown is likely between New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and the Trump administration over immigration.

One of President Donald Trump’s first official actions after returning to the White House was to declare an emergency at the U.S. Southern border with Mexico.

It is the first step toward implementing the president’s promised mass deportation of immigrants in the U.S. illegally.

Trump has promised to deport up to one-million undocumented immigrants per year and use the U.S. military to accomplish his goal.

New Jersey could end up being a central battle ground between the anti-immigration policies of the Trump administration, and the pro-immigration policies of New Jersey.

New Jersey’s immigrant population

The Migration Policy Institute estimates New Jersey’s immigrant population at 2.2 million people.

That makes New Jersey home to one of the largest immigration populations in the United States.

Of that number, an estimated 475,00 are in the U.S. illegally.

Another 2,600 are children of undocumented parents. They are the so-called “dreamers” and are considered U.S. citizens under the 14th Amendment.

President Trump has indicated he could challenge birthright citizenship but eliminating it would likely require a repeal of the 14th Amendment by Congress.

New Jersey: A Sanctuary State

Prior to his re-election to a second term, Murphy vowed to make New Jersey a safe haven for undocumented immigrants.

“We’ll be a sanctuary – not just city – but state,” Murphy proclaimed.

In 2018, Murphy’s then-Attorney General Gurbir Grewal issued the Immigrant Trust Directive.

Under the directive, Murphy banned state and local police from cooperating with federal immigration authorities.

It also banned local and county jail facilities from housing individuals arrested by immigration agents. The cooperative agreements dated back to the Democratic Bill Clinton administration. In 1996 a law signed by President Clinton allowed local and state law enforcement to partner with the federal government for enforcement of immigration laws.

There have been several republican led efforts to repeal New Jersey’s Immigrant Trust Directive. All have failed.

Democrats in the legislature have introduced a bill that would codify the directive into actual state law, but the bill has been stalled in committee.

What happens now?

Immigrant rights groups have begun holding weekly meetings in an effort to educated migrants about their rights and what to do if immigration agents knock on the door.

Federal law supersedes any state law, but states cannot be compelled to cooperate with immigration agents.

New Jersey cannot, however, prevent teams of immigration agents from moving into the Garden State to round up undocumented individuals.

The recently passed Laken Riley Act would require federal authorities to detain migrants accused of theft and violent crimes.

Where these individuals could be held is still an issue of much debate in New Jersey. Gov. Murphy has banned immigration detention contracts with local and county jails, but that ban is being challenged in court.

Some have speculated the Trump administration could threaten to withhold federal aid to states that refuse to aid immigration agents in their enforcement actions.

Murphy has signaled he is willing to work with President Trump and has asked him to help end New York $9 congestion pricing toll.

“I will never back away from partnering with the Trump Administration where our priorities align,” Murphy said in his State of the State speech last week, “But just as importantly, I will never back down from defending our New Jersey values — if and when they are tested.”

Given Murphy’s and Trump’s vastly different positions on illegal immigration, the issue will surely test the relationship between the Statehouse and the White House.

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