MADISON, Wis, (CN) - Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers on Friday responded to veiled threats from the Trump administration suggesting he might be arrested for ostensibly interfering with federal immigration policy.
"These threats represent a concerning trajectory in this county," Evers said. "We now have a federal government that will threaten or arrest an elected official - or even everyday American citizens - who have broken no laws, committed no crimes and done nothing wrong."
The response comes after Tom Homan, President Donald Trump's pick for border czar and an immigration hardliner, hinted to reporters outside the White House that he would prosecute Evers and other elected officials who stand in the way of ICE.
"Wait 'til you see what's coming," Homan said on Thursday. "You can support sanctuary cities if that's what you want to do. But if you cross that line of impediment or knowingly harboring and concealing an illegal alien, that is a felony."
The threats come after Evers in April sent guidance to state employees on how to respond if Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers or other federal agents show up at their workplace. In that guidance, Evers did not instruct state employees to impede federal agents.
Instead, Evers said the goal of the guidance was simply to provide clear instructions to state employees to help them comply with federal and state laws. His memo instructs state employees to ask the agent for identification and any documentation supporting their reason for being there. It also warns employees against answering any questions or granting access to any paper files, computer systems or nonpublic areas until an attorney can weigh in.
"Every state employee has a duty to protect confidential data and information collected or maintained by the State of Wisconsin in state offices and electronic filing systems," Evers said in the memo.
On Friday, following Homan's comments, Evers in a brief speech accused Republicans of twisting his words and spreading disinformation for political clout.
"Republicans and their right-wing allies, including Elon Musk, lied about this guidance, spread misinformation, accused me of doing things I didn't do or say and fueled a fake controversy of their own creation," Evers said.
The recommendations made in Evers' memo are not unlike those issued by the National Immigration Law Center, which also advises employees to contact an attorney before speaking to federal agents.
Nonetheless, the memo has prompted controversy not only in the White House but from Republicans in the Badger State. In a letter this week, the Republican-controlled state Legislature asked Evers to rescind the guidance, which they falsely claimed directs employees to illegally impede federal agents.
The letter - signed by 41 of the 54 Republican members of the state Assembly - cites a bill passed in March requiring local law enforcement to comply with ICE. It also takes a jab at former President Joe Biden.
"The Trump administration continues its efforts to deport thousands of noncitizens," the lawmakers wrote, "who entered our country illegally during the Biden administration."
The bill referenced in the letter has not yet passed through the statehouse. To become law, it would need to be signed by Evers.
The law would require sheriff's departments across the state to get proof of legal status from every individual held in county jail for felony offenses. State law-enforcement agencies would have to show compliance or face reductions in funding.
Republican lawmakers claim Evers' guidance was in direct defiance of the Trump administration's strict immigration policy.
Like Homan, they've also made direct or veiled threats that he could be arrested. On Thursday, Wisconsin state Representative Calvin Callahan called for authorities to "stick him in the same cell as the Milwaukee judge!" It was a reference to Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan, whom the FBI accuses of helping a migrant escape from ICE agents.
Source: Courthouse News Service
