New Mexico lawmakers, leaders respond to federal lawsuit

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — State lawmakers and leaders released the following statements in response to the federal lawsuit against New Mexico and the City of Albuquerque.

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez

“House Bill 9 is a constitutional exercise of state authority, and this office will defend it.  

The New Mexico Legislature passed this law after extensive consideration of documented harms occurring in immigration detention facilities operating in this state — inadequate medical care, deaths in custody, and conditions that fell well below acceptable standards. The Legislature made a considered judgment that New Mexico’s government, its employees, and its publicly funded facilities should not be instruments of a detention system that has caused serious and preventable harm to people held within our borders. That is precisely the kind of policy judgment that belongs to the states.  

The Constitution reserves to the states the power to govern their own affairs — including how state and local personnel are deployed and how publicly funded facilities are used. Federal agents remain free to enforce federal immigration law. They may make arrests, conduct investigations, and carry out removals. What they may not do is compel New Mexico’s officers, employees, and institutions to administer federal enforcement priorities the state has chosen not to adopt. The federal government has its own personnel and its own resources. It does not have a constitutional right to New Mexico’s.  

This lawsuit asks a federal court to override a democratically enacted state law because the administration disagrees with the policy choice the Legislature made. That is not a constitutional argument. It is an attempt to use federal litigation to reverse an outcome the administration dislikes. We will see them in court.” 

Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller

“I will always stand up for the safety, rights, and dignity of Albuquerque residents. Our policies ensure ALL families can call 911, send their kids to school, and access City services without fear, while making clear that City resources are not tools for federal immigration raids. We are ready to defend our community, our values, and our public safety in court,”

City Councilor Dan Lewis

“Mayor Keller deserves to be sued for his reckless promotion of dangerous sanctuary policies that undermine cooperation between law enforcement agencies and put everyone at risk. Sanctuary laws don’t protect; they create more victims. I opposed Keller’s so-called ‘Safer Community Places’ ordinance from the beginning. It’s nothing more than obstruction of law enforcement and this mayor chose his radical ideology over public safety. Most people in our City agree that there is a public safety benefit when local, state and federal law enforcement work together to enforce the law and protect innocent people.”

Deb Haaland

“As ICE continues threatening communities across the country, the state is the first line of defense against the Trump administration. In New Mexico, we are lucky that the state and localities worked to lawfully pass legislation to protect New Mexicans and their families from ICE. We can’t let the federal government continue to exert their will on New Mexico and we won’t let them intimidate us. We are a multicultural state, we must stand strong with our neighbors. That means as governor, I will do anything in my power to stop ICE from tearing families apart and committing crimes in our streets while advocating for strong, common sense immigration and border security reform.”

The Democratic Party of New Mexico

“The Immigrant Safety Act passed both legislative chambers and was signed into law constitutionally, within our rights as a state, concerning New Mexico’s own personnel, facilities, and resources. The Trump Administration may not like that New Mexico stands for the safety of all the families in our communities and against inhumane and dangerous conditions in for-profit detention centers, but they have to respect our rights as a state.  

The fact of the matter is that the Trump Administration is overstepping its authority as they continue to force a violent, clumsy immigration agenda onto communities it has terrorized across the country against their will.”   

Republican Party of New Mexico

“The lawsuit filed by the United States against the State of New Mexico, Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, Attorney General Raul Torrez, the City of Albuquerque, and Mayor Timothy Keller confirms what many New Mexicans have feared for months — that House Bill 9 and Albuquerque’s Safer Community Places Ordinance were driven by partisan politics rather than the safety, stability, and economic well-being of our communities.

Legislators who pushed HB9 chose political ideology over common sense and over the people they were elected to represent. This legislation appears to have been crafted not to improve public safety or immigration outcomes, but to advance an anti-Trump political agenda at any cost. In doing so, they ignored the serious consequences these policies would have on New Mexico families, local economies, county governments, and the very immigrants they claim to protect.

The federal government’s complaint makes clear that these laws threaten decades-long partnerships between local governments and federal authorities that have been essential to maintaining public safety and enforcing immigration law. These partnerships support jobs, economic activity, and critical infrastructure in communities like Otero County, where nearly 300 jobs are now at risk because of these reckless political decisions.

New Mexico legislators also failed to consider the financial burden these measures place on counties and municipalities already struggling with limited resources. Instead of working collaboratively to address immigration challenges responsibly and humanely, they chose confrontation and obstruction.

Most troubling is the complete disregard for the safety of New Mexicans. Policies that intentionally interfere with federal immigration enforcement risk creating greater instability, undermining law enforcement cooperation, and putting thousands of residents at risk. At the same time, these policies do nothing to improve the care, processing, or long-term outcomes for immigrants being housed in detention and processing facilities.

The people of New Mexico deserve leadership focused on public safety, economic security, and lawful solutions — not political theater designed to score partisan points. When elected officials prioritize ideology over citizens, communities suffer. The consequences of HB9 and related sanctuary-style policies are now being challenged in federal court, and New Mexicans are left to deal with the damage caused by leaders who appeared more interested in opposing President Trump than protecting the people of this state.

And now, after advancing policies that threaten jobs, hurt counties financially, undermine law enforcement cooperation, and divide communities, these same legislators want taxpayers to pay them for their failing policies. Instead of moving New Mexico forward, too many elected officials have focused solely on advancing their own political agendas while ignoring the real needs of working families, local governments, and public safety.

This election season, New Mexicans have an opportunity to speak loudly at the polls. The primary elections matter, and voters must carefully choose strong Republican candidates willing to go to Santa Fe and fight against harmful policies that put politics above people. New Mexico deserves leaders who will protect communities, strengthen the economy, support law enforcement, and put citizens first — not politicians who continue to gamble with the future of this state.”