Washington Republican leaders sharply criticized Governor Bob Ferguson’s response to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s August 13 letter, which demanded the state end what Bondi called “sanctuary state” policies that obstruct federal immigration law.
WAGOP Chairman and State Rep. Jim Walsh issued a statement Tuesday saying Ferguson’s position risks public safety and undermines federal authority.
“The current governor’s response to Attorney General Pam Bondi’s letter of August 13 demanding that he end his unlawful ‘sanctuary state’ policies is disappointing but entirely predictable,” Walsh said. “Bob Ferguson puts essential functions of state government at risk in order to perpetuate a foolish political fight with the federal government.”
Walsh criticized Ferguson’s emphasis on “values” in defending the Keep Washington Working Act, the 2019 state law limiting local law enforcement’s cooperation with federal immigration agencies.
He said Ferguson’s rhetoric echoes Confederate leaders who resisted federal authority during the Civil War.
“These justifications didn’t end well for Davis and Stephens then; they aren’t likely to end well for Ferguson now,” Walsh said.
Republicans argue that the state’s restrictions prevent federal immigration officers from targeting dangerous individuals in prisons and jails.
“If Ferguson is really interested in ‘keeping Washingtonians safe,’ he would cooperate with the Feds and give them access to our jails and prisons—where they can focus on locating and deporting gang members, drug dealers, sex traffickers and other hardened illegal alien criminals,” Walsh said.
The statement also accused Ferguson and other Democratic officials of ignoring the impact of illegal immigration on sex trafficking in the state.
“The dirty secret of Bob Ferguson’s ‘sanctuary state’ policies is that they have enabled the steady growth of sex trafficking in Washington,” Walsh said, alleging that traffickers use Interstate 5 to move children into sex slavery.
Walsh urged Ferguson to “rise above his petty partisan politics” and work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal agencies.
“That cooperation will actually make our communities safer,” he said.
The Republican statement came hours after Ferguson, joined by Democratic lawmakers and immigrant rights groups, rejected Bondi’s threat of criminal prosecution.
Ferguson has maintained that Washington will not redirect local law enforcement resources away from community safety to carry out federal immigration enforcement.
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