Susannah Luthi writes for the Washington Free Beacon about a questionable use of California taxpayers’ money.
The California legislature is considering a supplemental budget that would send some $15 million to nonprofits that help illegal immigrants avoid deportation as part of its effort to bankroll Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D.) efforts to obstruct the incoming Trump administration’s policies.
The added funding was unveiled Dec. 3, the first day of a special session Newsom convened so lawmakers could approve spending on the California Democrat’s Trump resistance plan, and comes less than two weeks after state budget analysts warned that the Golden State’s $2 billion deficit is projected to swell to $20 billion by 2026. It’s part of a $60 million legislative package—more than double the $25 million that Newsom requested—that also includes funding for expected litigation at the state and local levels.”We’re in the calm before the storm and we know the hurricane force winds are about to hit from the incoming federal administration—it’s time to get prepared and batten down the hatches,” state senate president pro tem Mike McGuire (D.) said in a statement.
Newsom, who is already seen as a likely 2028 presidential candidate, vowed to secure funding to sue the Trump administration over its expected policies on abortion, climate, and transgender issues. He also promised to combat President-elect Donald Trump’s repeated promises to deport illegal immigrants with criminal records. Surveys have shown that a majority of Americans support mass deportations, and immigration consistently polled among the top concerns for voters ahead of the presidential election—even in California.
Of the $15 million carved out for illegal immigrants in the supplementary budget proposal before the state senate, the Department of Social Services would receive $10 million for grants or contracts to organizations “to provide immigration legal services and removal defense.”
