COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (KMTV) — After President Donald Trump signed executive actionsto change immigration policy and call for stricter enforcement, some neighbors in Iowa are worried it might affect them or their loved ones.
- “At this time there are no enforcement changes at the Council Bluffs Police Department as it pertains to the immigration status of individuals,” said Council Bluffs Police Chief Matt Davis.
- On Friday, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds issued a memo to state law enforcement asking them to cooperate with federal immigration laws.
- “There’s a lot of fear, there’s people not knowing what to do,” said Joe Enriquez Henry, the state political director for LULAC. “You know, many undocumented immigrants do not have a place to go to if they were turned away.”
STATEMENT FROM THE COUNCIL BLUFFS POLICE DEPARTMENT
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Council Bluffs has a relatively large immigrant community. And when it comes to enforcing immigration laws, the Council Bluffs police chief says his officers aren’t doing anything differently.
I’m Southwest Iowa neighborhood reporter Katrina Markel.
“At this time there are no enforcement changes at the Council Bluffs Police Department as it pertains to the immigration status of individuals,” said Chief Matt Davis.
On Monday President Donald Trump signed a series of executive actions, including on immigration. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds also issued a memo to state law enforcement asking them to cooperate with federal immigration laws.
“You know, we’ve got states that are ready to help him implement it based on what his recommendations are,” Reynolds said.
The policy changes worry some neighbors that either they or their loved ones are more vulnerable to deportation.
Joe Enriquez Henry is the Iowa State Political Director for the League of United Latin American Citizens.
“There’s a lot of fear, there’s people not knowing what to do,” said Henry. “You know, many undocumented immigrants do not have a place to go to if they were turned away.”
Chief Matt Davis says that he knows there’s concern in Council Bluffs but says his officers focus on local policing.
“We’re a local police department we enforce local and state laws here in Council Bluffs,” he said.
“Local law enforcement does not have the resources to do the work of the federal government,” said Henry.
Davis said, if requested, CBPD would cooperate with federal law enforcement as permitted by Iowa law.
I asked Senator Chuck Grassley about the executive orders on Wednesday afternoon. He said more funding for enforcement is needed at the federal level and that the administration is not focusing on undocumented immigrants who are otherwise law-abiding.
“They don’t have to worry as far as I’m concerned and I don’t think they have to worry much,” he said.
Grassley said that federal efforts will prioritize those who’ve been accused of other crimes.
