Cities Feel They Are Above The Law, So Does A Federal Judge

Sanctuary city order permanently blocked by federal judge

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FILE - In this April 14, 2017, file photo, protesters hold up signs outside a courthouse where a federal judge was to hear arguments in the first lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's executive order to withhold funding from communities that limit cooperation with immigration authorities in San Francisco. A federal judge Monday, Nov. 20, 2017, has permanently blocked President Donald Trump's executive order to cut funding from cities that limit cooperation with U.S. immigration authorities. San Francisco and Santa Clara County had filed lawsuits. (AP Photo/Haven Daley, File)

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A federal judge has permanently blocked President Donald Trump's executive order to cut funding from cities that limit cooperation with U.S. immigration authorities.

U.S. District Court Judge William Orrick issued the ruling on Monday in lawsuits brought by two California counties, San Francisco and Santa Clara. Orrick said Trump cannot set new conditions on spending approved by Congress.

The ruling nullifies the executive order Trump signed in January, shortly after taking office, which was designed to crack down on so-called "sanctuary cities," municipalities that do not comply with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) requests for assistance with identifying and deporting undocumented immigrants.

Jurisdictions that have refused to comply include the cities of Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The order was designed to "strip federal grant money from the sanctuary states and cities that harbor illegal immigrants," according to then-press secretary Sean Spicer. The executive order immediately prompted a court challenge, first by San Francisco and followed by other counties including Santa Clara.

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Earlier challenges had brought cities in breach of the order a temporary reprieve. Those fighting the executive order celebrated the decision Monday.

"This is a victory for the American people and the rule of law," San Francisco city attorney Dennis Herrera said in a statement. "This executive order was unconstitutional before the ink on it was even dry.

"We live in a democracy. No one is above the law, including the president."

However, a Department of Justice spokesman said the court had "exceeded its authority" in its ruling, and vowed that the department would continue to follow Trump's direction with regard to the January executive order.