FLASHBACK: VP Harris pushed for illegal immigrant to practice law in California over Obama admin's objections

FLASHBACK: VP Kamala Harris, while serving as California’s attorney general, sided with an illegal immigrant’s bid to acquire a license to practice law in a move that was opposed by the Obama administration. 

Harris, who is expected to be making a visit to the southern border this week, supported in a 2012 Supreme Court brief the desire for 35-year-old illegal immigrant Sergio Garcia to be granted a law degree by the State Bar of California, arguing that the government could not block him from doing so. 

“No law or policy prevents this court from admitting Garcia to the State Bar,” Harris’ office wrote in the brief. “In fact, admitting Garcia to the Bar would be consistent with state and federal policy that encourages immigrants, both documented and undocumented, to contribute to society.”

Harris’ stance on the issue put her at odds with then-president Barack Obama, whose Department of Justice opposed the move and said it would violate 1996 federal immigration law, San Jose Mercury News reported.

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“In the view of the United States, (federal law) prohibits this court from issuing a law license to an unlawfully present alien,” government lawyers wrote at the time.

The state bar, civil rights groups and Latino lawmakers in the state all came out in support of Garcia, the report notes, though Harris’ endorsement “made the difference,” Kevin Johnson, the dean of UC Davis’ law school, told the Sacramento Bee earlier this year. 

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Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI) Leadership Conference, at Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

“When the highest law enforcement officer of a state weighs in and says this is legal, this is permissible, this is possible, the Supreme Court of the State of California listens,” said Johnson, who also represented the State Bar of California in support of Garcia’s case. “She could have ducked and covered and tried to avoid any political controversy. But she sided with the State Bar of California and Sergio Garcia, so, I respect her for that.”

Garcia ultimately became the first undocumented immigrant to practice law in California after the state Supreme Court sided with him and legislation was passed that allowed the licensing of individuals regardless of immigration status.

Garcia was ultimately awarded the Medal of Valor by AG Harris before becoming a citizen and voting for Harris on the presidential ticket along with Joe Biden in 2020, CBS News reported.

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Immigrants line up at a remote U.S. Border Patrol processing center after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border on December 07, 2023 in Lukeville, Arizona.  (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

The Garcia situation was one of several examples where Harris was to the left of the Obama administration, which Harris referenced during the 2019 presidential primary when she spoke out against deportations for illegal immigrants who haven’t committed any crimes beyond crossing the border. 

“Well, thank you. I will say — no, absolutely not, they should not be deported,” Harris said. “And I actually — this was one of the very few issues with which I disagreed with the administration, with whom I always had a great relationship and a great deal of respect.”

“But on the secure communities issue, I was attorney general of California,” Harris continued. “I led the second-largest Department of Justice in the United States, second only to the United States Department of Justice, in a state of 40 million people.”

Democratic presidential nominee and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris delivers remarks at a campaign rally in Savannah, Georgia, U.S., August 29, 2024.  (REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz)

“And on this issue, I disagreed with my president, because the policy was to allow deportation of people who by ICE’s own definition were non-criminals. So as attorney general, and the chief law officer of the state of California, I issued a directive to the sheriffs of my state that they did not have to comply with detainers, and instead should make decisions based on the best interests of public safety of their community.”

Harris reiterated her differences with Obama on illegal immigration in 2019 interview with Univision’s Jorge Ramos where she said that Obama was “wrong” when it came to deportations and ICE detainers. 

The Harris-Walz campaign did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

Multiple outlets reported this week that Harris’ campaign is considering a visit to the U.S.-Mexico border on Friday, although details have not been decided. The vice president’s critics were quick to dismiss the possible trip as a “political stunt.”

The latest Scripps News/Ipsos Poll, released last week, shows that approximately 54% of all respondents “strongly” or “somewhat” support the idea of mass deportation, according to the poll. 

On the subject of immigration in general, respondents favored Trump (44%) to Harris (34%) as better able to handle the issue.

Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw and Timothy HJ Nerozzi contributed to this report