Liberal Portland Panics as ICE Enforces Federal Law

PORTLAND, OR - In a move that comes as a shock to no one outside the western coast liberal bubble, Washington County, just outside Portland, has officially declared a “state of emergency” because ICE agents dared to enforce the law.

Given the recent slew of legal and nonlegal actions against Portland-based ICE activities, many saw this coming. 

The county’s move came as local officials throughout the Portland region scrambled to distance themselves from the Department of Homeland Security and even launched investigations into their own police for helping federal officers.

In a recent report by Fox News, unrest in the Portland area last summer prompted then-President Donald Trump to direct federal attention to the “war-ravaged” city.

By late September, Trump had announced plans to deploy National Guard troops to help restore order, an effort that U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut later blocked in October.

Immergut, despite being appointed by President Trump, has ruled along democratic lines in a number of her recent decisions, particularly in regard to blocking federal intervention into immigration enforcement when local law enforcement has its hands tied. 

Washington County, home to about 600,000 residents, reacted to DHS enforcement by declaring a state of emergency.

This action supposedly unlocked $200,000 in taxpayer funds for “community organizations” serving “impacted residents,” as reported by Oregon Public Broadcasting.

An immigration-rights advocate told the outlet her group was receiving roughly 100 phone calls a day about Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity, even claiming that “broken glass is everywhere” because agents were allegedly breaking car windows during arrests.

County Commissioner Nafisa Fai suggested that local residents could be protected from eviction or power shut-offs if their family’s breadwinner were detained by ICE.

It appears that, in Washington County, violating federal immigration law now entitles you to subsidized rent and free electricity.

Meanwhile, in Eugene, Oregon’s third-largest city, police are facing an “independent review” after accusations that they may have cooperated with ICE. The Eugene Police Auditor’s Office confirmed it will conduct a “complete and thorough investigation,” according to the local CBS affiliate.

The controversy stems from claims that Eugene officers violated Oregon’s sanctuary state laws, which forbid police from helping enforce federal immigration rules. However, a police spokeswoman firmly rejected that idea.

“Eugene Police Department has nothing to do with immigration, nor with raids [Wednesday],” said Melinda McLaughlin in comments to the local NPR station, adding that photos circulating on social media did not show Eugene officers.

After a recent ICE raid in the area, several of Oregon’s most progressive lawmakers issued predictable outrage, accusing federal officers of “violent detentions” and denying suspects due process.

Representative Val Hoyle, Senator Ron Wyden, state House Speaker Julie Fahey, and state Senate leader James Manning Jr. released a joint statement saying they were “alarmed” by ICE’s actions and were working with “community leaders” to “ensure all constituents are accounted for.”

“This was only the most recent in a series of aggressive raids carried out across the state in recent months,” they said in the letter. “Every Oregonian and every person in the United States, regardless of immigration status, is entitled to the full protections guaranteed by the Constitution.”