WASHINGTON, DC – On Monday, Washington AG Nick Brown, California AG Rob Bonta, and Oregon AG Dan Rayfield joined together to conduct the latest in a series of multi-AG community impact hearings. The West Coast Democratic AGs answered audience members’ questions regarding the Trump administration’s cuts to federal funding and attacks on immigrants, while also addressing efforts to protect states’ residents against the administration’s unlawful actions.

“A very increased type of action being brought by the states,” AG Nick Brown said. “That is reflective of one, being extremely prepared for this moment, two, the collaboration amongst the states, and three, a level of lawlessness and recklessness by the Trump administration that was not there the first time. And we as attorneys general need to respond.”

Key highlights from The Olympian: 

• “Brown, Bonta and Rayfield have been active in taking the federal administration to court. In a media availability ahead of the town hall, Brown cast Trump as a ‘blatantly dishonest man’ with ‘such low character’ that the lawsuits are needed to preserve the rule of law in America.’”
•  “‘But it won’t persevere if people capitulate, if they hide, if they don’t fight back in this moment,” [AG Bonta] said. ‘And that’s why I’m really proud of the collaboration that’s happening among the attorneys general.’”
• “We as attorneys general need to respond, and at base of all of our litigation is one binding principle: We are going to act when the president violates the law,” [AG Brown] told reporters ahead of the town hall. “And that is what we’re seeing from this president and his administration time and time again.”
• “‘We are prepared, and we have a commitment to take the Trump administration to court each and every time they violate the law, violate the Constitution and hurt our states,’ Bonta said.”
• “‘We have a president who simply disregards the law, who disregards the separation of powers, who does not care about precedent or constitutional authority,’ [AG Brown] said at the town hall. ‘He is doing what he wants, and he is doing it with such brazen disregard for the truth.’”
• “‘I know there’s a lot of interest, concern — maybe anxiety and fear — about what’s happening at the federal level,’ Bonta said. ‘We want to assure people … that we will continue to fight by their side.’”
• “‘We will stand in place to protect our sanctuary-state laws that exist up and down the West Coast,’ Rayfield said at the town hall.”
• “Brown’s office also has remained adamant that the Keep Washington Working Act — which largely prohibits local law enforcement from using local resources to aid U.S. immigration efforts — is consistent with federal law.”

Key highlights from The Spokesman Review: 

• “‘We as attorneys general have to take those threats seriously and reaffirm state sovereignty,’ Brown said. ‘Each of our states has adopted different policies over how local and state officials can cooperate with federal immigration enforcement officials. We do that to keep the public safe and make sure that people who are the victims of crime can cooperate fairly and freely with law enforcement without fear of immigration enforcement actions against them.’”

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