Oakland Mayor still unapologetic over committing felony, obstructing justice

Yesterday John talked about the ICE response to Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf tipping off the illegal aliens in her community to an impending immigration enforcement sweep. A request has been made to have the Department of Justice look into this act of lawbreaking and determine if some form of charges would be appropriate. The Deputy Director of ICE has since gone on to suggest some specifics.

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ICE Deputy Director Thomas D. Homan, however, had a different idea of what she was trying to do, saying on Tuesday that he believed some of the 864 “criminal aliens” that still remained at large “were able to elude us thanks to the mayor’s irresponsible decision.”

“Sanctuary jurisdictions like San Francisco and Oakland shield dangerous criminal aliens from federal law enforcement at the expense of public safety,” Homan said in a statement. “The Oakland mayor’s decision to publicize her suspicions about ICE operations further increased [risks] for my officers and alerted criminal aliens — making clear that this reckless decision was based on her political agenda with the very federal laws that ICE is sworn to uphold.”

Being an elected official who is potentially facing felony charges of aiding and abetting criminal illegal aliens might put most politicians off their feed, but not Mayor Schaaf. She’s been busily granting interviews and seems eager to discuss her obstruction with anyone willing to listen. That includes one session with the Washington Post, where she seemed almost gleeful in wearing the #RESIST badge.

Asked by The Post whether she considered herself part of “the resistance” movement — the unofficial title for left-leaning Americans who do not support the Trump administration — she responded with a resounding yes.

“I consider myself a law-abiding citizen. I consider myself a believer in an American democracy that moves towards a more just society. And I definitely consider myself part of the resistance,” she said.

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At this point, I’m guessing that Schaaf is betting that Trump and Jeff Sessions would never actually bring charges against her. Under the normal rules of political warfare, sending in officers to haul an elected mayor of a major city out in handcuffs would set off a firestorm which your average politician would run away from like the wind. Of course, Trump is no ordinary politician and, in fact, seems to revel in a good fight. If the Attorney General can come up with some charges which he believes will stick, I wouldn’t put it past him at all.

But what does Libby Schaaf get out of all this? Well, for one thing, her national approval and name recognition on the left has just shot up by 1000% or more. She’s 52 years old, which leaves plenty of room for future political opportunities. For all I know, she’s actually put herself in position for a national office run, or perhaps a cabinet position in a future Democratic administration.

Of course, that all relies on her not being in prison, or at least getting a pardon as soon as control of the White House changes hands again.

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Ed Morrissey 12:40 PM | November 21, 2024
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David Strom 11:20 AM | November 21, 2024
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