Trump’s DOJ sues Virginia over laws restricting ICE agents and mask wearing
Tom Homan praises Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration in New York
Border czar Tom Homan details the escalating crackdown on illegal immigration, criticizing New York City’s anti-ICE policies implemented by Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul. Homan deplores sanctuary city rules that he believes endanger communities and emphasizes the need for federal enforcement. Responding to arguments for abolishing ICE, he calls on states to cooperate, citing successes in eliminating criminal aliens and combating human trafficking.
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FIRST ON FOX: The Justice Department sued the Commonwealth of Virginia on Thursday over two new laws that the Justice Department says would subject masked federal agents to criminal penalties and threaten local ICE cooperation agreements.
“Law enforcement officers risk their lives every day to keep Americans safe, and they do not deserve to be vilified or harassed simply for doing their jobs,” Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Fox News Digital on Thursday. “Virginia’s anti-law enforcement policies regulate the federal government and are designed to create risks for our agents. These laws cannot stand.”
The lawsuit, first shared with Fox News Digital, argues that Virginia is violating the Constitution by trying to dictate how federal officers conduct law enforcement operations, including when they can wear masks, what identifying information they must display and whether local agencies can continue ICE cooperation agreements unless the federal government agrees to conditions imposed by the state. The Justice Department said the laws threaten officer safety, undermine federal immigration enforcement and violate the Supremacy Clause.
At the center of the case is a pair of laws signed by Democratic Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger that will go into effect in July; one is a law that restricts law enforcement officers, including federal officers, from wearing face coverings and requires them to show identification while on duty, and the other imposes state-mandated conditions on federal immigration enforcement agreements.
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The Justice Department has sued Virginia over laws that officials say could penalize masked federal agents and eliminate local ICE cooperation agreements. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
The Justice Department said federal officers who violate Virginia’s mask and ID law could face a Class 1 misdemeanor under Virginia law, punishable by up to 12 months in prison, a fine of up to $2,500, or both.
The lawsuit names Virginia Attorney General Jay Jones and left-leaning Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano, who has previously been supported by groups affiliated with George Soros.
The lawsuit claims that Virginia’s mask ban is “manifestly unconstitutional” because it attempts to regulate “what federal officers can and cannot wear in the performance of their duties,” revealing agents’ identities and increasing risks to them and their families.
“The Department of Justice will steadfastly protect law enforcement privacy and security from unconstitutional state laws like Virginia’s,” Assistant Attorney General Brett Shumate of the Justice Department’s Civil Division said in the press release.
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Spanberger restricted ICE agents from working on state property and required federal agents to wear visible badges and banned law enforcement from wearing face masks while on duty in May. (Mike Kropf/Richmond Times-Dispatch)
The DOJ is seeking a court order to block both laws, which begin July 1.
Spanberger, Jones and Descano took action to counter the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement agenda in Virginia.
In February, Spanberger issued an executive order rescinding a Youngkin-era order directing state law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration enforcement efforts.
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Anti-ICE agitators attempted to block vehicles leaving the Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, on Friday night. (Freedom NewsTV)
“The President told us that we are safer because of irresponsible, poorly trained ICE agents arresting mothers and detaining children. Our broken immigration system is something that needs to be fixed, not an excuse to terrorize our communities,” Spanberger said. Published on X In response to Trump’s State of the Union.
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The case comes amid ongoing protests outside New Jersey’s Delaney Hall immigration detention center, where protesters verbally insulted ICE officers, blocked vehicles, allegedly assaulted police officers and made threats that led to multiple arrests.
“Governor Spanberger cannot tell Federal officers how to do their jobs,” Assistant Attorney General Stanley Woodward said in the press release. “It simply cannot prohibit them from ensuring their own safety while conducting federal law enforcement operations. Our lawsuit today stops these unconstitutional efforts.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to Governor Spanberger and AG Jones’ offices for comment.
