Pa. Democratic leaders say little after Trump again threatens to defund ‘sanctuary cities’

As President Donald Trump warned Thursday that he was “working on papers” to direct the government to pull federal funding from so-called sanctuary cities, Pennsylvania Democrats stayed largely mum.

Trump posted on his social media account, Truth Social, that his administration was preparing to withhold all federal funding for sanctuary cities or states allowing them. Sanctuary cities are typically defined as places that limit law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

It’s not the first time Trump has threatened such action. He campaigned on the promise for years, and in March, he told reporters that an executive order ending sanctuary cities was coming “very shortly.”

The definition of a sanctuary city varies, and it’s unclear which cities Trump’s potential funding cuts may target. In Philadelphia, officials refuse to comply with requests from ICE to detain prisoners based on their immigration status unless federal authorities submit a warrant signed by a judge. That policy remains in place, the city solicitor said in January.

The city also does not ask for immigration status from individuals to access city services, unless required to do so by the service.

Philadelphia last fiscal year received $2.2 billion in federal funding, accounting for nearly a fifth of its total spending, with much of the money going toward health and social services programs.

» READ MORE: How much could Philly lose if Trump cuts funding to cities? Here’s what you need to know.

Because city and county policies can vary, it is difficult to pinpoint how many jurisdictions might fit a “sanctuary city” definition, or be at risk of potentially losing funding in Pennsylvania. Several anti-immigration groups put the number at around a dozen cities or counties in the state.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s office declined to comment on Trump’s post Thursday. Parker has been largely quiet on the issue of sanctuary cities, even as activists have increasingly called on her to defend the city’s policy, which former Mayor Jim Kenney made a cornerstone of his tenure.

Asked in March about concerns over federal cuts more broadly, Parker said any federal reductions in the city were “grave and extremely concerning.”

“We’re just a little old city of Philadelphia,” she said.

Gov. Josh Shapiro has also largely avoided responding to Trump’s comments. At an event at the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal in Philadelphia on Thursday to talk about Trump’s tariffs, Shapiro declined to comment on Trump’s sanctuary city threat, saying he had not seen the post.

“We’re not a sanctuary state, and I haven’t seen it,” Shapiro said.

Later, asked about Trump’s approach to immigration in Pennsylvania, where both undocumented immigrants and green card-holding refugees have been deported, Shapiro said the nation needs “comprehensive immigration reform,” a secure border, and clear rules.

“What the president is doing right now, in many ways, is instilling fear in too many of our immigrant communities across Pennsylvania, taking people who are otherwise legally permitted to be here, and removing them without due process from their communities,” he said.

“We can have due process. We can have compassion. We can have clear rules of the road. We can have a secure border. We need to do all of that.”

In 2017, the City of Philadelphia sued the Trump administration over its decision to withhold about $1.5 million in federal law enforcement grant money unless the city’s police department assisted federal authorities in identifying and turning over undocumented immigrants.

The city won that case in 2018. A federal appeals court largely upheld Philadelphia’s victory in 2019.

It’s unclear if or when Trump might take action again. Sen. Dave McCormick (R., Pa.) in a tele-town hall Wednesday night said he believes a “showdown” between the administration and sanctuary cities and counties in Pennsylvania was coming.

“Both from a law enforcement perspective, but also from federal funding,” McCormick said Wednesday, according to a report in the Pennsylvania Capital-Star.

“I’m all for enforcing the law humanely,” McCormick said. “But in the end, we have to enforce the law, and I think that’s what’s going to happen with these towns and cities that are not enforcing the law.”

“I think there’s going to be a showdown, which ultimately they’re going to lose,” he added.

Congress held hearings with leaders of sanctuary cities early last month. The mayors of Boston, Chicago, New York, and Denver all testified in what became a heated grilling session. Parker was not asked to attend.

U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, the only Pennsylvania Democrat on the committee, warned at the March 3 hearing that cities pressured to cooperate with ICE would be put “between a rock and a hard place.”

“If they work with ICE, they risk violating their own residents’ constitutional rights and opening themselves up to costly litigation,” said Lee, who represents a district that includes parts of Pittsburgh. “But if they don’t do Trump’s bidding, they’re being threatened with losing federal funding.”

Staff writers Anna Orso and Jeff Gammage contributed to this article.