Gov Gavin Newsom walks back ICE ‘state-sponsored terrorism’ comment
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D-Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom appeared to backtrack from previous comments calling ICE raids “state-sponsored terrorism” in response to a question from conservative commentator Ben Shapiro during an interview on Thursday.
Shapiro brought up comments Newsom made shortly after news broke about an ICE-related shooting in Minnesota last week. Although Shapiro criticized Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s comments claiming the victim participated in “domestic terrorism,” he expressed equal disappointment with Newsom’s statement.
“Then your press office tweeted that this was state-sponsored terrorism, so Governor, I need to ask you about that,” Shapiro said.This is Gavin Newsom.” “Such things make our politics worse. Yes, so it is. I mean, our ICE officers are clearly not terrorists. “A tragic situation is not state-sponsored terrorism.”
“Yes, I think that’s fair,” Newsom responded.
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California Governor Gavin Newsom previously accused an ICE-involved shooting in Minnesota of being “state-sponsored terrorism.” (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Shapiro asked Newsom if the state of California could do more to cooperate with ICE officers to prevent tragedies.
“That’s exactly what they’re doing in California,” Newsom said. “There are over 10,000 people that I’ve collaborated with since I became governor of California. We’re working very directly with ICE on the issue. [California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation] state prison. California has probably cooperated with more ICE transfers than any other state in the country. And I vetoed numerous pieces of legislation from my legislature to stop the state of California from being able to do that.”
Newsom also claimed that sanctuary city policies in California make illegal immigrants safer by allowing them to cooperate with law enforcement and attend education without fear of deportation, and blamed the Trump administration for failing to pass immigration reform.
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Newsom defended sanctuary city policies but stopped short of saying Democrats “must abolish ICE.” (Fred Greaves/Reuters)
“So this is a tool of pragmatism because of the complete failure of the federal government,” Newsom said. “If we had comprehensive immigration reform and a federal response adequate to that task, asylum policy would be unnecessary.”
In response to Shapiro’s question, Newsom also criticized calls to “abolish ICE” and said he did not agree with the idea.
“When I think about a presidential candidate named Harris saying that in the last campaign, I disagree. I remember hours later going up to Chris Hayes and saying I thought it was a mistake. Absolutely,” Newsom said.
Newsom’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Newsom has repeatedly used anti-ICE rhetoric when criticizing the Trump administration. In September, he claimed that ICE raids were the tendencies of an “authoritarian” government.
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Newsom has frequently criticized the Trump administration’s immigration policies, using provocative language. (Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)
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“People ask: ‘So, are you being over-the-top authoritarian?’ Bulls–we’re exaggerating… These are not just authoritarian tendencies, these are authoritarian actions by an authoritarian government,” Newsom said.
