Congressman Kildee Drafting Legislation to Defund Immigration Executive Order
Flint representative was among early opponents of Trump’s action.
Congressman Dan Kildee says he is sponsoring legislation to defund any action related to President Trump’s executive order on immigration.
Speaking at an emergency town hall meeting in Dearborn Wednesday, the Flint Democrat said he’s drafting a measure to prevent federal employees from implementing the order.
“It would be a de facto block on any federal official, any customs agent, any immigration official, any TSA official from doing anything to implement this executive order, so we could stop it,” Kildee says.
Kildee was one of the early opponents of the executive order, which forbids entry to the U.S. for 90 days by people from seven Muslim-majority countries: Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. The order also halts refugee admissions for 120 days and caps the number of refugees entering the country this year.
The same day Trump issued the order, Kildee released a statement opposing the action.
“President Trump’s ban is morally wrong and not consistent with our American values. Such a blanket policy stigmatizes an entire religion and casts doubt upon thousands of peaceful Muslims in Michigan who are our neighbors, co-workers and friends,” he wrote. “Right now, refugees from all countries undergo thorough security screenings before they are allowed into the U.S., including screenings by counterterrorism, FBI, Homeland Security and Department of Defense officials.”
Kildee also joined four other Michigan Democratic Congressional representatives in sending a letter to Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette, urging him to join other state attorneys general in opposing Trump’s order. They wrote, in part:
“You have sworn an oath to not only support and defend the U.S. Constitution, but also the Constitution of the state of Michigan. Article I, Section 2, of the Michigan Constitution states that no person shall ‘be denied the enjoyment of his civil or political rights or be discriminated against in the exercise thereof because of religion, race, color or national origin.’ The executive order is in clear violation of this principle.
“The people of Michigan deserve to know that they will not be subject to arbitrary detention and deportation merely based on their religion. As Attorney General, you must speak out and use your office to challenge President Trump’s executive order, which is a clear violation of the constitutional rights of your constituents.”
