Legislation that would have made Maryland a “sanctuary state” and a bill that would have lowered tuition rates for Tennessee illegal aliens failed in their respective state legislatures. The bills were seen as challenges to President Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
The Maryland bill (HB 1362), which passed the House of Delegates before being withdrawn in the Senate, would have barred police from honoring ICE detainer requests to keep illegal aliens in custody unless a warrant is obtained. The measure also would have prohibited police from asking about immigration status.
The measure drew a veto threat from Maryland Governor Larry Hogan and failed to garner the support of Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., a Democrat. According to The Washington Times, Maryland Republican Party Chairman Dirk Haire said the bill initiated a “civil war” between the liberal and moderate wing of the Democratic Party. “Mainstream Democrats have been responsive to the message we’ve been sending, which is that sanctuary cities are dangerous,” he said.
In Tennessee, a bill that would have allowed illegal alien to pay taxpayer-subsidized in-state tuition rates failed. Republicans in the Senate (Sen. Todd Gardenhire) and the House (Rep. Mark White) sponsored the legislation for the last three years but again failed to gain traction. This year SB 635 passed the Senate but was voted down in a House Committee despite support from Republican Gov. Bill Haslam.
