The Trump administration proposed releasing immigrant detainees into so-called “sanctuary cities” represented by Democratic lawmakers to retaliate against President Donald Trump’s political adversaries, The Washington Post reported, citing unnamed Department of Homeland Security officials and emails.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s district in San Francisco was among those the White House wanted to target, according to Department of Homeland Security officials. The administration also considered releasing detainees in other Democratic strongholds.
“This was just a suggestion that was floated and rejected, which ended any further discussion,” a White House statement to the paper said.
May Davis, the deputy White House policy coordinator, raised the idea with officials from the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection in an email dated Nov. 16, with the subject line “Sanctuary City Proposal.”
