President Trump’s U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche was asked by Fox News host Laura Ingraham this week if Democratic mayors of sanctuary cities “will begin to see real pain in term of losing federal funding?”
Blanche replied “yes,” and said it was “incredible” to watch mayors including Michelle Wu of Boston “try to justify their conduct.”
Blanche and Ingraham assert that Wu and other Democratic mayors are making their cities more dangerous by not helping federal agents arrest and detain undocumented migrants without due process.
Ingraham interrupted and raised her voice at Blanche: “They don’t care, Todd, they don’t care. So what are you going to do about it? They do not care. And they’re giving you, sorry, the big middle finger. They don’t care.”
.@DAGToddBlanche: “All we’re asking is to go into jails, identify illegal criminals, and remove them. Yet mayors like Boston’s say no. That’s obstruction. We’ve filed 9 lawsuits already, more are coming. President Trump’s not OK with it, I’m not OK with it—and we won’t stop.” pic.twitter.com/bb3yHr5AjX
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) August 20, 2025
Blanche told Ingraham that the Department of Justice filed lawsuits in nine states and said: “You can expect more of those to come. There’s potentially criminal investigations,” because according to Blanche the mayors are “obstructing our efforts.”
Blanche added: “All we’re trying to do, think about this for a minute, Laura, we’re saying ‘Can we go into your jails? The people that are charged with crimes. Can we go in and find those who are here illegal and get them out?’ And people like the Boston mayor are saying no.”
Below is Boston’s Mayor Wu responding to Attorney General Pam Bondi‘s request for sanctuary jurisdictions to submit a compliance plan with Trump’s immigration policies or face funding cuts and criminal prosecution.
BREAKING: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu just responded to Pam Bondi’s request for sanctuary jurisdictions to submit a compliance plan with Trump’s immigration policies today or face funding cuts and criminal prosecution. Wu issued her response in front of City Hall. Check this out: pic.twitter.com/t34fA3kJtb
— CALL TO ACTIVISM (@CalltoActivism) August 19, 2025
Wu said the threats from the DOJ “are serious and consequential…but silence in the face of oppression is not an option.”
She added: “The U.S. Attorney General asked for a response by today, so here it is: Stop attacking our cities to hide your administration’s failures. Unlike the Trump administration, Boston follows the law. And Boston will not back down from who we are and what we stand for. We will not back away from our community that has made us the safest major city in the country.”