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When asked his thoughts on the city proclaiming to be a sanctuary city — just days after President Donald Trump said federal funding could be at risk for such cities — Portman, a Cincinnati Republican, said he “was not aware of that.”
“It would be strange to me that Cincinnati would choose to become a sanctuary city after the administration says that funding would be reduced or cut if a city does that,” said Portman. “It seems that it would have the opposite effect of what was intended, I guess.”
The press conference Monday was on the heels of Trump’s executive order to place a temporary travel ban on seven countries — which are a majority Muslim — for 90 days, which prompted Portman over the weekend to say that order “was not properly vetted.”
Portman told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sunday that “we ought to all take a deep breath and come up with something that makes sense for our national security.”
Cranley and Hamilton County Commission President Todd Portune said they don’t believe Trump has legal standing to withhold federal funds from a local government proclaiming they are a sanctuary city.
Portune said during Monday’s press conference, “I like to believe that we are still a nation of laws. We certainly at the local level are going to enforce the laws.”
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Portman questioned if some had different definitions of “sanctuary city.”
“We ought to be sure the laws are being properly enforced. If people don’t like the laws, they have the opportunity to change the laws,” Portman said. “But the bottom line is if people don’t believe our immigration laws are appropriate then we should be promoting specific reforms.”
Portman said he wants to see reforms related to the border so “we can make the border more secure.” He also wants to have an immigration system “that’s not just more fair but easier to enforce. Right now I just think there’s, in many respects, a system where people are unclear.”
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