Watch: GOP Rep. James Comer Confronts 4 Sanctuary City Mayors to Their Faces

Kentucky Rep. James Comer, the Republican who chairs the House Oversight Committee, confronted four Democratic sanctuary city mayors on Wednesday over their refusal to fully cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Lawmakers questioned Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, and Denver Mayor Mike Johnston about the policies, especially in light of President Donald Trump’s efforts to deport illegal aliens.

Comer used his question time to drill each of the officials on the policies of their cities, rattling off their stances on the matter before asking them point-blank about their sanctuary city designation.

“Mayor Johnston, is Denver a sanctuary city?” Comer asked.

“Folks use that term differently. I can tell you what Denver does,” Johnston began.

“OK, I take that as a yes,” Comer said before moving down the line to Johnson.

“Is Chicago a sanctuary city?” the lawmaker pressed.

“A 40-year policy of being a welcoming city,” Johnson responded.

“I take that as a yes,” Comer said.

“Mayor, is Boston a sanctuary city?” he asked Wu.

“Boston is a safe city,” Wu replied.

When the lawmaker reached Adams, he noted that the mayor of the Big Apple has in public statements expressed a willingness “to work with ICE on detaining the most criminal illegals.”

“My question to you, sir, is New York City a sanctuary city?” he asked.

“Based on our classification, yes,” Adams admitted.

🚨 CAUGHT 🚨

Boston and Chicago Mayors said they’d only turn over an illegal alien to ICE on a criminal warrant…

But ICE has statutory authority to issue administrative warrants for removable aliens.

Citizens of Boston and Chicago, know that through wordplay, your mayors are… pic.twitter.com/m7JQkg4PIu

— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) March 5, 2025

Comer then used his remaining time to confront the mayors on whether they would turn over criminal illegal aliens to ICE.

He used the example of an illegal alien outside Boston raping and impregnating his 14-year-old daughter “while living in a shelter for illegal aliens,” as well as an illegal alien in Chicago, who was part of a foreign gang, being arrested for murder but being released without charges.

Both Wu and Johnson struggled to answer clearly if they would turn over those illegal aliens for deportation.

“The point that we’ve got to iron out today is that we have to have cooperation,” Comer concluded.

“It is federal law to turn over those illegal criminals to ICE, and we’ve heard reports, and many of you have said publicly, that you are going to obstruct that,” he continued. “That is against the law.”

The fact that major cities are failing to help with the permanent removal of even the worst criminals, and apparently in some cases are releasing them to roam the streets without even facing charges, is simply a disgrace.

No matter how much these mayors want to virtue signal about being a “welcoming city,” there is nothing virtuous about letting evil people, particularly illegal aliens, prey on their own residents, including the most vulnerable.

The fact that they couldn’t even clearly admit that they have sanctuary policies ought to indicate that those policies simply shouldn’t exist.

Let’s hope that the Republicans actually hold them accountable.

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