Leftist WI Governor’s ICE Memo Comes Under Fire

Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ advice to state workers on how to slow-walk ICE has raised some serious questions about his conduct. But will the far-left governor face criminal charges for his questionable memo putting him at odds with the Trump administration and possibly the enforcement of federal immigration law? 

Asked about the memo last week, Trump administration Border Czar Tom Homan warned state leaders like Evers not to “cross the line.” 

“I meant what I said. You cannot support what we’re doing, and you can support sanctuary cities if that’s what you want to do. But if you cross that line of impediment or knowingly harboring [and] concealing an illegal alien, that is a felony, and we’ll treat it as such,” Homan told a reporter from Gateway Pundit. 

When asked why federal law enforcement isn’t arresting leaders of sanctuary cities and states shielding violent illegal immigrants, including those on the terrorist watch list, Homan said, “Wait ‘till you see what’s coming.” He said the same when asked about Evers’ memo. 

President Trump last week signed an executive order directing the attorney general and secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to publish a list of states and local jurisdictions obstructing federal immigration law enforcement and notify each sanctuary jurisdiction of its non-compliance. Sanctuary jurisdictions that do not comply with federal law may lose federal funding.

‘Concerning Trajectory’

Evers, a two-term Democrat, released a video statement on Friday, calling Homan’s statement a “chilling” threat that “should be of concern to every Wisconsinite and every American who cares about this country and the values [we] hold here.” 

“These threats represent a concerning trajectory in this country,” the governor said. “We now have a federal government that will threaten or arrest an elected official or even everyday American citizens who have broken no laws, committed no crimes and done nothing wrong,” the governor said. 

Actually, we now have a federal government willing to arrest and hold accountable state and local elected officials who, based on evidence, appear to have broken the law — including thumbing their noses at or interfering with federal law enforcement activities. 

Such is the case of Milwaukee County Judge Hannah Dugan, who was arrested late last month on charges of interference with a federal law enforcement operation and unlawful concealment of an individual subject to arrest. The leftist judge is accused of helping an illegal immigrant facing battery charges temporarily elude apprehension by federal agents who showed up at the courthouse to arrest the previously-deported man. 

Last week, the Wisconsin Supreme Court relieved the felony-facing judge from her duties, at least while the legal process plays out. 

‘There Should be Massive Outrage’

In his video defense, Evers claims he hasn’t broken any laws and he’s “never encouraged anyone to break any laws or commit any crimes.” As the Democrat is wont to do, he blamed “Republicans and their right-wing allies, including Elon Musk” of lying about the “guidance” his administration insisted state employees follow and spreading “misinformation” to fuel a “fake controversy of their own creation.” 

According to the memo, state employees “encountering ICE or other federal agents at their workplace” are directed to verify “the agent’s stated identity,” question why they are at the state office, and request documents “supporting their reason for being there.” The directive also tells state employees to ask for copies of judicial or administrative warrants while they consult an attorney. They’re supposed to ask federal law enforcement officers in pursuit of potentially dangerous suspects to “have a seat in a public area, ideally in a space that is separate from the rest of the office.” 

If a state employee cannot reach legal counsel, the employee is supposed to ask the federal agent to come back at a more convenient time. 

The memo also spells out a list of don’ts. Employees are not to answer federal agent questions, particularly when an agent inquires about someone a state worker may know or “presents a warrant with an individual name.” Nor should an employee give federal authorities access to paper files or computer systems without first speaking to an attorney, the memo asserts. 

Such directives sure sound like an attempt to hinder federal law enforcement duties to former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a two-term Republican who lost to Evers in a bid for a third in 2018. 

“Can you imagine telling employees not to comply with law enforcement when they come to the office with a warrant for a killer, rapist, or kidnapper?!? There should [be] massive outrage against the Evers administration!” Walker wrote on X above a copy of Evers’ memo. 

In the video, Evers said, “The rule of law matters. Following the law matters.” 

It does. That’s why Judge Hannah Dugan, accused of some very troubling crimes, will have her day in court. Perhaps the governor will, too. As Democrats like Evers are fond of saying, “No one is about the law.” 

“In this country, the federal government doesn’t get to abuse its power to threaten everyday Americans,” Evers declared. Where was he during the previous four years when his old ice cream-eating buddy, Joe Biden, ostensibly directing the federal government, did just that? 

But illegal immigrants aren’t “everyday Americans.” And neither is Tony Evers. He’s a leftist governor of a powerful swing state whose directives to state employees are understandably being questioned and coming under fire in a time when an increasing number of government officials appear to be stepping all over the “rule of law.” 

“The very fact that Tony Evers is instructing his employees to either break federal law or not cooperate with law enforcement is a new low for Tony Evers,” Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Rob Vos, a southeast Wisconsin Republican, told reporters last week. 

Matt Kittle is a senior elections correspondent for The Federalist. An award-winning investigative reporter and 30-year veteran of print, broadcast, and online journalism, Kittle previously served as the executive director of Empower Wisconsin.