Federalism: Barriers to the Border Wall and Sanctuary Jurisdictions

Ellen Lempres ’18 and Caroline Peck ’18 have continued the Rose Institute’s federalism series with two new pieces: “Federalism: Sanctuary Jurisdictions” and “Federalism: Barriers to the Border Wall.”

“Federalism: Sanctuary Jurisdictions” discusses the history and current political debate surrounding sanctuary jurisdictions. As President Trump approaches his hundredth day in office, he remains staunch in his belief that cities, states, and campuses that promise to be sanctuaries for undocumented immigrants are in violation of federal law and his own executive orders. This piece puts this pressing political issue in the broader context of federalism by explaining the positions of states, counties, and cities making policy at the local level relative to the positions of the Department of Homeland Security and the president at the federal level.

On the subject of President Trump’s much discussed border wall, “Federalism: Barriers to the Border Wall” delves into the complexities of constructing such a wall spanning over a thousand miles of land, with varying terrain and various categories of ownership ranging from private citizens to state government. This piece touches on the border-wall-battles taking place in the U.S. Congress and in the legislatures of states such as New Mexico. From funding and security concerns to constitutional complications involving eminent domain, building the wall would require significant cooperation and compliance among national, state, and local governments.

Click here to read “Federalism: Barriers to the Border Wall”

Click here to read “Federalism: Sanctuary Jurisdictions”

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