Warner & Kaine Slam Department of Homeland Security for Issuing Erroneous List of ‘Sanctuary Jurisdictions’ in Virginia

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) issued the following statements slamming an erroneous list released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that includes 20 counties—including Martinsville County, which does not exist—and 13 “cities”—including Duffield, a town with roughly 70 residents and no dedicated police department—as being “sanctuary jurisdictions defying federal immigration law.” There are no sanctuary cities in Virginia and various jurisdictions, including Martinsville and Tazewell County, have released statements to share their confusion regarding being included on the list.

“This list is further proof that the Trump administration’s obsession with government efficiency is nothing but cheap talk. The White House should get its basic facts straight before attempting to come after Virginia’s localities and its hardworking public servants,” said Warner. 

“The list is riddled with egregious errors—Martinsville isn’t a county and Duffield isn’t a city,” said Kaine. “Coupled with the Department of Health and Human Services’ report this week that cites nonexistent studies, I’m concerned that the Administration is turning to artificial intelligence to replace the work of dedicated civil servants that are being fired. This is yet another reminder of why it’s important that agencies be staffed by experts, because putting inaccurate information out only sows chaos and confusion, and puts commonsense solutions to real problems further out of reach.”

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