A senior Trump administration official has challenged a Maryland politician to a debate on “sanctuary” policies following several recent incidents in which illegal immigrants were arrested on sexual assault charges and released instead of being turned over to federal authorities.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli tweeted Friday afternoon he wanted to publicly take on Marc Elrich, executive of Montgomery County, on the region’s immigration policies.
“(1/3) Sanctuary County, Montgomery County, MD cannot debate the failure of its sanctuary policies on the merits (7 violent assaults, rape etc, incl child victims in ~1 month), so they resort to ad hominem attacks using nazi implications – arguments out of bounds in civil society,” Cuccinelli wrote on Twitter.
(1/3) Sanctuary County, Montgomery County, MD cannot debate the failure of its sanctuary policies on the merits (7 violent assaults, rape etc, incl child victims in ~1 month), so they resort to ad hominem attacks using nazi implications – arguments out of bounds in civil society.
— USCIS Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli (@USCISCuccinelli) September 6, 2019
“(2/3) If MontCo Chairman Elrich thinks the sanctuary policy they are so proud of is so good, I challenge him to a debate on the subject. Neutral location (e.g. cspan or webcast w/no audience present). 1 hr total, 2.5 min open & close, w/alternating 5 min blocks determined by lot,” the USCIS chief continued. “(3/3) No moderator, only a timekeeper w/a hard stop (i.e., mic goes off at end of time). I’ll defend children and crime victims, Elrich can defend rapists and murders who shouldn’t even be in this country. What do you say, Mr. Chairman?”
(3/3) No moderator, only a timekeeper w/a hard stop (i.e., mic goes off at end of time). I’ll defend children and crime victims, Elrich can defend rapists and murders who shouldn’t even be in this country. What do you say, Mr. Chairman?
— USCIS Acting Director Ken Cuccinelli (@USCISCuccinelli) September 6, 2019
Over the past two months, seven male suspects have been arrested on sexual assault-related charges, WJLA reported in late August.
In one case, a 21-year-old Salvadoran who has been charged with sexually abusing two children was released from county custody despite Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issuing a detainer. A detainer is a request from ICE that asks local officials to continue to hold an illegal immigrant in jail for 48 hours so federal agents can transfer the person into their custody.
“Sanctuary” policies in cities and counties allow local officials to ignore ICE’s requests, releasing illegal immigrants instead. ICE has said the policy puts potential criminals back into the community, while local officials have touted the idea as a way to protect those in the country without legal documents.
ICE has said local Maryland officials did not cooperate with them. Elrich said the blame should not be on county officials.
“Recently, there have been reports of concerns expressed that Montgomery County has released undocumented people, accused of serious crimes, back into communities despite the fact that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) may have issued detainer requests for them. In fact, the release of people — whether they are awaiting trial or have completed serving their sentences — are decisions made by the court system and not by the County government. That is the same process for everyone in the court system,” Elrich wrote in a statement.
