New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio threatened Wednesday to take the Trump government to court if federal officials were sent to the city amid violence and unrest in recent weeks.
De Blasio, during a press conference on Wednesday, said the federal government seems “obsessed” with intervention in the city when city officials don’t want help.
“Across the country, people are distressed, but the president’s deep and unwavering desire to send agents across the country where they are not needed,” de Blasio said, calling it “unproductive.”
De Blasio criticized federal intervention in cities like Portland, Oregon, as “unconstitutional.”
MAYORS OF PORTLAND, CHICAGO, ATLANTA, OTHER GREAT CITIES DEMAND THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE ‘FEDERAL FORCES’
“It’s dangerous,” de Blasio said, noting that the administration is setting a “dangerous precedent for sending federal officials” and “doing work they shouldn’t be doing.”
“We cannot allow it here in New York City or anywhere else,” he continued. “I want to be very, very clear that we will not allow this to happen.”
De Blasio said he sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security and Attorney General Bill Barr “clarifying” that the presence of federal officials “is not welcome here.”
TRUMP LIKES DEMOCRAT CITIES TO ‘WAR ZONES’, INDICATED IN FEDERAL INTERVENTION
“We are New Yorkers and we will not take lightly if we see federal officials in New York City,” he said. “If we do, we will be in court.”
De Blasio’s comments come as President Trump has threatened federal intervention in cities across the country as he sees an increase in violent crime and riots in recent weeks and months.
White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany criticized de Blasio on Tuesday and cited a “600 percent increase in violence” in the city, while offering federal support.
“De Blasio appears to have no difficulty criticizing police officers, but it is very difficult to control the streets of New York City,” he said.
Last week, Trump compared Democrat-led cities to “war zones,” hinting that a federal intervention could come.
The president said that “the left-wing group that runs the cities is not doing the job it is supposed to do.”
Meanwhile, Trump is expected to announce an expansion of the Justice Department’s “Operation Legend” program that is running in Kansas City. Trump, later Wednesday, will announce that the operation will extend to Chicago and Albuquerque.
