Democratic mayors testify about “sanctuary city” policies at House hearing

Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez returned for a second round of questioning, digging in on the circumstances surrounding the Justice Department’s move to drop the charges against Adams, as he repeated his previous refrain that he did nothing wrong. 

Ocasio-Cortez, who sought the ranking member post late last year, is no longer a member of the committee but joined the hearing Wednesday. In an earlier round of questioning, she asked Adams about his meeting with the president and his lawyer’s meeting with prosecutors.

“This is important not just for the city of New York, but for the people of the United States of America,” Ocasio-Cortez said, adding that what is being alleged “is genuinely not just about what may or may not have occurred from the mayor’s office,” but what is happening at the DOJ more broadly.

Ocasio-Cortez said that the prosecutors who resigned rather than file a motion to drop charges against Adams were “not Democratic U.S. attorneys,” pointing to the Republicans who suggested as well “that the prosecutorial power at the Department of Justice may be influencing what is occurring.”

“Instead of carrying that out, and carrying out the erosion at the Department of Justice, they would have preferred to give up their entire careers,” Ocasio-Cortez said, referring to the prosecutors. “Seven lifelong public servants involved in law enforcement, mind you.”

The New York Democrat called the developments a “four-alarm fire that everyone must be paying attention to,” raising the question of whether Adams’ interactions with the Justice Department were an isolated case or indicative of a broader pattern in other jurisdictions.

“For a party that talks about states’ rights and municipal rights, we must defend, yes, the rule of law, including in the Department of Justice,” she concluded. 

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, questioned Adams about the circumstances surrounding the death of Laken Riley, who was murdered by an immigrant who was in the U.S. illegally and had been detained and released from custody in New York City. The 22-year-old nursing student’s death in Georgia became a rallying cry for Republicans on the campaign trail last year. 

Adams called it a “despicable crime,” saying he believes “people like that should be held accountable.” The mayor added that he has advocated to stop “this revolving door” in the criminal justice system. 

When Greene asked whether Adams will advocate for an end to sanctuary policies in New York, Adams said he has made it clear the portions of the law that he believes should be altered to “prevent crimes like this from taking place.”

Rep. Dave Min, a California Democrat, repeatedly asked Adams why he hasn’t resigned in light of the charges brought against him, and the questions surrounding his ties to the Trump administration in recent weeks. 

“It’s clear that whatever your intentions, whatever actions you take whether on immigration or anything else, you do not enjoy the trust and confidence of the people of New York City,” Min said, before asking if Adams has plans to resign. 

Adams rebuked Min over the question, saying the idea that he should resign “takes away the power of the people.”

“The people of the city elected me to be the mayor, and you should not be a hypocrite,” Adams said.

Adams, questioned again about the circumstances surrounding the Justice Department’s move to drop the charges against him, said “it appears as though we’re asking the same questions over and over and over again.”

“My comments are not going to change,” Adams added. “No quid pro quo, no agreement, I did nothing wrong.”

The question came from Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a Texas Democrat. She also asked the New York City mayor whether the president is weaponizing the Justice Department against local governments. Adams appeared to receive advice from a man seated behind him before answering the question. He then deferred to the judge overseeing the case, as he did earlier in the hearing.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican, said she was making criminal referrals to the Justice Department to investigate the mayors after she questioned them over their views on immigration enforcement. 

Luna said after her line of questioning that it’s “very clear” that the Democratic mayors’ policies are in violation of federal law, an assertion that the mayors have denied all day.

“You all speak about a broken immigration system, and yet here you guys are aiding and abetting in that entire process,” Luna said, adding that open border policies harm people “on both sides.”

“I do not think you guys are bad people but I think you are ideologically misled,” Luna said, which is why she said she will be criminally referring the mayors to the Justice Department for investigation.

Luna added that she wasn’t making the move to “bully you guys,” but she said she believes their policies are hurting the American people.

“If you guys continue doing what you’re doing, you’re not going to help anyone,” Luna added. 

A criminal referral does not require the Justice Department to open an investigation, but serves as a formal notice that a lawmaker or committee believes criminal conduct may have occurred.

Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, a Virginia Democrat, leaned into more questioning of Adams over the Justice Department’s move to drop the charges against him. 

“Let’s talk about extortion for a minute. Mayor Adams, I think everyone is a little bit concerned about the timeline of events that has led to your case being dropped,” Subramanyam said, asking the mayor about his meeting with Mr. Trump’s border czar and later with the president himself.

Adams said he and Trump spoke during a January meeting about “immigration in general” and the importance of securing the border. Adams also said he and the president did not discuss the charges against him during the meeting. 

Pressed on whether he had discussed his case with anyone in the Trump administration, Adams repeatedly opted not to answer directly, deferring to the judge overseeing the case. 

“I think Mayor Adams is not answering the question because he probably has,” Subramanyam said. “And I think that there’s a pretty clear timeline here that indicates that a case is being dropped in the name of trying to appease the president who seems to be OK with what’s going on.”

Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, berated the mayors with a series of questions, questioning their fitness for the roles and arguing that they are harming the people that they serve.

“All of the mayors here today are actively working to harm the American people you represent,” Mace said. “You all have blood on your hands.”

Mace asked the mayors whether “breaking into our country” is against law and whether it’s against the law for illegal immigrants convicted of crimes to be released back into the public, among other questions that she framed as yes or no questions.

“You guys don’t sound very confident today,” Mace said, as she interrupted the mayors when they sought to clarify their answers. And she interjected when Adams was responding to one question, saying “you’re having the hardest time today.” 

The South Carolina Republican continued, asking whether the mayors “hate Donald Trump” more than they love their country and whether they “love illegal aliens” more than their “fellow countrymen.”

Rep. Robert Garcia, a California Democrat, used his time to question Adams over the charges against him and his interactions with the Trump administration. Garcia asked whether Adams was “selling out New Yorkers” to “save himself” from prosecution. 

“There’s no deal, no quid pro quo and I did nothing wrong,” Adams said, adding that he would refer further questions on the case to the judge overseeing it.

Connolly, the ranking member, continued the line of questioning, asking whether Adams was pressured, in exchange for dropping the charges, to cooperate with the Trump administration on immigration.

“I think I was extremely clear,” Adams reiterated. “No quid pro quo, no agreement, I did nothing wrong, but serve the people of New York City.”

Rep. Virginia Foxx, a North Carolina Republican, asked the mayors how much their cities have spent to care for migrants over the past four years. 

Adams said New York has spent about $6.9 billion to house and care for immigrants and asylum seekers, by far the highest number among the four mayors.

Chicago’s mayor said the city has spent roughly 1% of its budget since 2022, or hundreds of millions of dollars. Chicago’s 2025 budget was $18.7 billion. 

Denver’s mayor said the city spent $79 million over the last two and a half years. Boston’s mayor said she did not have a number because the city doesn’t ask about immigration status when providing city services.

“Taxpayers have been bearing the brunt of the massive wave of illegal aliens who have entered the United States,” Foxx said, arguing that “the Biden administration seemingly declared tax payers and hard working Americans collateral damage in the pursuit of open borders.”

Asked about her city’s approach to immigration by GOP Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona, Wu turned the question around. She suggested that Congress has a larger role in making the nation safer — and should turn its focus toward other issues. And she refuted the idea that immigration itself is behind threats to public safety.

“Respectfully, congressman, you could pass bipartisan legislation and that would be comprehensive immigration law. The false narrative is that immigrants in general are criminals, or immigrants in general cause all sorts of danger and harm. That is actually what is undermining safety in our communities,” Wu said. “If you wanted to make us safe, pass gun reforms. Stop cutting Medicaid. Stop cutting cancer research. Stop cutting funds for veterans. That is what will make our cities safe.”

Rep. Jim Jordan, an Ohio Republican, grilled the Denver mayor about the release of alleged gang member Abraham Gonzalez, who was released from a county jail in recent days. Jordan repeatedly asked Johnston about the timing of the release and the notice given to ICE. 

ICE said in a post on social media on Monday that Gonzales was released from Denver Co. Jail due to Colorado’s sanctuary policies. ICE said it was “forced to arrest him in public, where he assaulted officers,” adding that “Sanctuary policies endanger communities and law enforcement.”

Asked by Jordan about the incident in a heated exchange, the Denver mayor said he had seen video of the incident, reached out to ICE and coordinated with their team. Johnston said individuals are released from jail under the city’s policy, coordinating with ICE on the release time and location. He said the releases have been conducted hundreds of times, and “this is the first time” he’s been made aware of an incident like this.

“An officer got assaulted because of your policy,” Jordan said. 

Johnston defended Denver’s sanctuary policies, saying they don’t mean the jurisdiction shields immigrants from law enforcement. He said instead, what the city does is “provide services.”

Connolly, the ranking Democrat on the committee, took aim at the Trump administration’s stance on immigration, asking the mayors about border czar Tom Homan’s approach to immigration enforcement. He asked Boston’s mayor about Homan’s comments saying he wanted to “bring hell” to the city over its approach to immigration.

“Shame on him for lying about my city,” Wu replied, urging the committee to “bring him here under oath and let’s ask him some questions.”

Connolly questioned the premise of the hearing altogether, saying local law enforcement are cooperating with political leadership “and it’s working — it’s bringing down crime rates.”

“The proposition that immigrants cause crime is false,” Connolly said, adding that the idea that sanctuary cities need to be punished is “simply a war on urban America.”

The committee chairman began the questioning portion of the hearing by asking each mayor to acknowledge their sanctuary policies and status as a sanctuary city. 

The Kentucky Republican asked the mayors of Boston and Chicago about individual cases, asking whether they would turn immigrants facing charges over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

ICE often issues what are known as immigration detainers, or requests for local law enforcement to hold a defendant with an immigration case or notify the agency if they plan to release them. Many sanctuary cities do not honor detainers.

The mayors said that their cities follow the law, outlining how their local law enforcement collaborates with federal agents, as the chairman repeatedly asked them, “Would you turn that criminal over to ICE?” None of them said they would proactively turn an immigrant over to ICE if they were detained on state charges, but said city police would work with federal agents if they had a criminal warrant. Immigration violations are typically civil offenses.

“The point that we’ve got to iron out today is that we have to have cooperation,” Comer said. “It is federal law to turn over those illegal criminals to ICE, and we have heard reports and many of you have said publicly that you were going to obstruct that.”

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu touted the city’s status as “the safest major city in the nation” in her opening remarks, saying the laws on the books “promote the kind of community trust that keeps all of us safe.”

“We are the safest major city in the country because our gun laws are the strongest in the nation, because our officers have built relationships over decades, and because all of our residents can trust that when they call 911 in the event of an emergency or to report a crime, help will come,” Wu said. 

Wu argued that the Trump administration’s approach to immigration is “undermining that trust.”

Celebrating Boston’s achievements on education and innovation, among other things, Wu said “we are all of these things not in spite of our immigrants, but because of them.”

“To every one of my neighbors back in Boston, know this — you belong here, this is your home,” Wu said. “We are the safest major city in the nation because we are safe for everyone.

Wu arrived at the hearing with her newborn daughter, who was born in January. 

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also highlighted the public safety aspect of his city’s immigration policy, saying immigrants would be reluctant to report crimes if they feared being turned over to federal agents. 

“As mayor of Chicago, nothing is more important to me than the safety and well-being of all residents. Since I was elected, my administration has been laser-focused on creating and implementing public safety initiatives that protect all Chicagoans,” Johnson said, listing policies and programs he has spearheaded in the city. 

“Violent crime is down in Chicago. The city ended 2024 with its lowest homicide rate in five years. The city is also safer because of our welcoming city ordinance. That law makes sure that the city’s police resources are focused on our local priorities,” he continued. “In fact, 40 years of Chicago’s leaders have recognized that our policies toward civil immigration matters help to prevent and solve crimes. Put simply, any actions that amplify fears of deportations make Chicago more dangerous.”

Johnson said that any actions that “amplify fears of deportations” make Chicago more dangerous, saying the fears cause witnesses and victims to avoid cooperating with police.  

“When there is trust between cities’ residents and the police, undocumented immigrants come forward to report crimes to local law enforcement and provide information that helps the police solve those crimes,” Johnson said.

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston began his testimony by recalling how when he first entered office in July 2023, Denver was receiving buses of immigrants, totalling around 42,000 people over the course of 18 months, “the largest per capita influx of any city in America.”

“We are each entitled to our own opinion about what should happen at the border, but that was not the question facing Denver,” Johnston said. “The question Denver faced was what will you do with a mom and two kids dropped on the streets of our city with no warm clothes, no food and no place to stay.”

Johnston said as mayor he has an obligation to protect the health and safety of everyone in Denver. He outlined that what started as the largest encampment in Denver history, with more than 200 migrant families living in shelters, now stands at zero migrant encampments in the city. 

“In the midst of this, migrants did not bring a wave of crime to Denver, in fact crime went down,” Johnston said. 

The Denver mayor said America must acknowledge the “full story” of immigration in this country, recalling the personal stories of immigrants who came to the city and urging that Denver has come out “stronger than what we were before.”

The embattled mayor of New York City defended the city’s approach to immigration in his opening remarks, coupling the posture with his own commitment to public safety, saying “as mayor of New York City and a former police officer for 22 years, keeping New Yorkers safe is my top priority.”

Adams cited declining crime rates in New York City and said he was appearing on Wednesday to testify on how the city can continue to reduce crime “even as a sanctuary city.”

“To be clear, the sanctuary city classification does not mean our city will ever be a safe haven for violent criminals,” Adams said. “It also does not give New York City the authority to violate federal immigration laws. To the country, New York City will always comply with city, state and federal laws as it does now,”

Adams said law-abiding immigrants in New York have an “important role,” contributing spending power to the city’s economy, among other things. He said his role as mayor includes managing the population within his city, which includes creating an atmosphere that allows every resident — “documented or not” — to access vital services. 

“I cannot have a city where parents are afraid to send their children to school, or where children are sleeping on the streets, creating the potential for child exploitation and sex trafficking,” Adams said. “If an undocumented person refuses to seek medical care until they have a medical emergency, our city’s health care system will be strained, and if an undocumented person witnesses a crime, but is afraid to call 911 for fear of being turned over to federal authorities, criminals will roam free.”

However, Adams said he is “committed to working with federal officials to go after violent gangs and those who harm residents of our city.”

Rep. Gerry Connolly of Virginia, the top Democrat on the committee, used his opening statement to highlight the Justice Department’s decision to drop the case against Adams. 

“President Trump has tried to force the conditional dismissal of very serious charges against one of our witnesses here today, in exchange for that witness’ total and complete submission to the radical immigration agenda being propounded by the administration,” Connolly said. “And the DOJ has done so over the objections of a Republican acting U.S. attorney who President Trump appointed.”

Connolly called the arrangement a “flagrant, corrupted quid pro quo.”

The Virginia Democrat stressed that state and local sovereignty is essential, saying denying it is an “assault on the independence of every American city across the country.”

“Today, Republicans have hauled before us the mayors of four major American cities to frame them as lawless, because those cities have some limits on how intrusively and aggressively their own officials can conduct federal immigration operations and responsibilities,” he said.

Connolly argued that the laws that the GOP takes issue with are “in full compliance with federal law,” do not obstruct federal law enforcement officials from doing their duties and are backed by evidence that he says makes communities safer.

Comer kicked off the hearing Wednesday, setting the stage to criticize the sanctuary policies by contrasting the Biden administration’s approach to immigration with President Trump’s action. 

“Over the past four years, the Biden administration created the worst border crisis in American history,” Comer said as he gaveled in the hearing. 

“In a few short weeks President Trump has proved what we all know to be true,” Comer said. “The Biden administration could have stopped the crisis at any moment, if only they had the courage to enforce the law.” 

Turning to the sanctuary policies, Comer said the laws “only create sanctuary for criminals” at American peoples’ expense. 

“We cannot let pro-criminal, alien policies in obstructionist sanctuary cities continue to endanger American communities and the safety of federal immigration enforcement officers,” Comer said. “Today, Mayors Wu, Johnson, Johnston and Adams will be held publicly accountable for their failure to follow the law and protect the American people.”
Comer said that the president is “taking action against sanctuary cities,” and Congress must follow suit by not allowing a “single penny of federal funding” to go to the jurisdictions.

New York Mayor Eric Adams’ appearance at the hearing comes as he has been embroiled in scandal in recent weeks when the Justice Department moved to drop federal corruption charges against him, a decision that was linked to his approach to immigration enforcement in the nation’s most populous city.

When Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove instructed Manhattan prosecutors to drop the case, he justified the move in part by saying it had “unduly restricted Mayor Adams’ ability to devote full attention and resources to the illegal immigration and violent crime.” The move led to the resignation of the acting head of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York Danielle Sassoon, among other top Justice Department officials, who resigned in protest rather than file a motion seeking to drop the case. 

Sassoon alleged in her resignation letter that the Justice Department proposed dismissing the charges against Adams in return for his assistance in enforcing the federal immigration laws. Adams’ attorney denied that he offered to help enact the president’s deportation agenda in exchange for having his case dropped, while Bove also denied there was any quid pro quo.

Arriving for the hearing on Capitol Hill, Adams said, “The law is very clear in New York City, that we are not allowed to collaborate for federal courts with ice on civil enforcement.”

“But I also want to share with the congressional leadership here how we collaborate every day with our federal partners at going after those who are dangerous in our city,” he said. “And that is who I’ve always been, and we’re going to continue to do that, no matter the heads of these various agencies, and I look forward to doing that.”

The hearing will likely highlight a standoff between the federal government and local jurisdictions that has emerged since Mr. Trump took office.

In January, the new leadership at the Justice Department directed federal prosecutors and law enforcement to focus on enacting the president’s immigration agenda and potentially charge local officials who get in the way of their efforts, while also directing the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Forces to assist in enacting the policies. 

The Trump administration has also threatened to withhold federal funds for jurisdictions that don’t comply with federal immigration law or interfere with enforcement. In a January executive order dubbed “Protecting The American People Against Invasion,” the president directed the attorney general and homeland security secretary to ensure that sanctuary cities “do not receive access to Federal funds,” and take legal action against them. 

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston has played a central role amid an influx of immigrants to his city. According to the Denver Gazette, around 40,000 immigrants have arrived since 2023 in Denver, which is located about 640 miles north of the border city of El Paso, Texas. Johnston’s office told the Denver Gazette that it has helped 5,000 immigrants file for asylum or work permits.

Shortly after President Trump was elected in November, Johnston said he would be willing to use civil disobedience, or if necessary, go to jail to stop immigration enforcement in his city. Mr. Trump’s border czar Tom Homan responded, saying, “Look, me and the Denver mayor, we agree on one thing. He’s willing to go to jail. I’m willing to put him in jail.”

Johnston has softened some of his language in more recent interviews with local news outlets, saying he would work with ICE officers but would continue to protect schools, churches and hospitals.

Sanctuary policies generally refer to laws that dictate that a jurisdiction may not comply to some extent with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, whose agents work with local law enforcement to carry out federal immigration law in non-sanctuary cities. Dozens of localities across the country limit how local law enforcement complies with ICE. 

Advocates for the sanctuary laws have long argued that compliance with ICE discourages individuals who are in the country illegally from reporting other crimes to local law enforcement, and that the sanctuary policies create a safer environment for immigrants more broadly.

The policies have been around for decades. But criticism has grown in recent years as some Democratic-led cities struggled to manage an influx of migrants who entered the country under the Biden administration. And the Trump administration’s effort to enhance border security and pledge to enact the largest mass deportation operation in history has increased tension between federal policy and the local priorities.

House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer, a Kentucky Republican, said in a statement that committee Republicans are planning to “hold sanctuary mayors publicly accountable for refusing to abide by the law and placing Americans’ lives at risk.”

Comer, who launched the probe into the cities’ policies, celebrated that the Trump administration is “rightfully taking action against sanctuary cities,” alleging that the cities’ leaders have shielded criminals and endangered public safety. He argued that for refusing to comply with federal immigration enforcement, the local governments “should not receive a penny of federal funding.”

The Kentucky Republican has highlighted President Trump’s emphasis on border security and cracking down on illegal immigration, noting that Congress must determine what other actions are necessary — while ensuring that federal law is enforced.

Here are the mayors who will be testifying before the GOP-led Oversight Committee:

• Boston Mayor Michelle Wu
• Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson
• Denver Mayor Mike Johnston
• New York Mayor Eric Adams