Texas Asks Court to Declare ‘sanctuary Cities' Ban Constitutional

AUSTIN — A federal judge on Thursday strongly questioned both sides in a case asking him to declare Texas' newly passed "sanctuary cities" ban legal, saying the issue was "political" and openly expressing doubt that he had jurisdiction over the issue. The preemptively filed the case on the same day Gov. Greg Abbott signed the bill into law to try to avoid lawsuits. Since then, the state's major cities, counties and civil rights organizations have sued Abbott and other state officials to temporarily block the law's Sept. 1 implementation. A federal judge in San Antonio heard arguments Monday in that case.State attorneys argued that cases surrounding the law should be tried in Austin because the state was the first to file a lawsuit, officials who are defendants in the cases reside in the city and the crafting of the legislation happened in Austin."The proceedings that happened in San Antonio Monday belong to this court," said David Hacker, an attorney for the state.  Continue reading...