Trump says he has legal right to send undocumented immigrants to sanctuary cities

President Trump tweeted on Saturday night that his administration has the legal right to send undocumented immigrants to sanctuary cities and demanded it happen. 

“Just out: The USA has the absolute legal right to have apprehended illegal immigrants transferred to Sanctuary Cities,” he wrote. “We hereby demand that they be taken care of at the highest level, especially by the State of California, which is well known or its poor management & high taxes!”

Just out: The USA has the absolute legal right to have apprehended illegal immigrants transferred to Sanctuary Cities. We hereby demand that they be taken care of at the highest level, especially by the State of California, which is well known or its poor management & high taxes!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) April 14, 2019

The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment. 

White House spokesman Hogan Gidley on Saturday told Fox News shortly before the announcement that the administration was working with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to try to send undocumented immigrants to sanctuary cities. 

“They have said they wanted all of these illegal aliens into their communities,” Gidley said on Fox News’s “Justice with Judge Jeanine.”

“We’re working with DHS, we’re working with ICE, to try and make sure that happens because, after all, it’s what they want. They should not say, ‘This is retribution politically.’ They should say, ‘This is an olive branch,'” he continued. 

Gidley also said before the president’s tweet that the White House was looking into whether it can legally send undocumented immigrants to these cities. 

“We’re trying to figure out if we can do that legally,” he said.