Denver Mayor Mike Johnston has pledged to protect illegal aliens in the sanctuary city from deportation efforts under President-elect Donald Trump’s administration.
Johnston vowed to resist mass deportations by employing local resources and rallying community support, calling it a “Tiananmen Square moment.”
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Mike Johnston vows to mobilize 50K Residents & Police in DIRECT confrontation with federal agents - calls it a "Tiananmen Square moment"Should he be arrested for inciting an… pic.twitter.com/eZIrtOXqPs— Publius (@OcrazioCornPop) November 23, 2024
“More than us having [federal agents] stationed at the county line to keep them out, you would have 50,000 Denverites there,” Johnston said in an interview with Denverite.
He likened the situation to the iconic standoff during the 1989 protests in China’s Tiananmen Square, where a lone protester famously faced off against a tank.
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“You’d have every one of those Highland moms who came out for the migrants. And you do not want to mess with them,” Johnston added, referring to community members ready to oppose federal intervention.
Since December 2022, Denver has seen the arrival of approximately 40,000 illegal aliens, the highest per capita influx in the nation.
The surge has strained local resources and brought challenges, including a rise in crime linked to the Venezuelan prison gang Tren de Aragua.
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The gang has reportedly taken control of apartment complexes and engaged in violent activities in Denver and the neighboring city of Aurora.
Aurora City Councilwoman Danielle Jurinsky (R) criticized Johnston’s approach, saying it underscores a lack of productivity in sanctuary cities. “If Mayor Johnston wants to stand at the Denver border with, I believe he said, Highland moms, or something to that effect, it will just further show how unproductive he is,” Jurinsky told The Post.
I also want to be clear on Trump's "Operation Aurora:"
Welcome to Aurora @realDonaldTrump!@RepJasonCrow you don't stand with anyone or for anything. I have watched this human suffering with my own eyes and yet I've not heard from you once. I had a Guatemalan man through his… https://t.co/84F70VabN9— Danielle Jurinsky (@DaniJurinsky) November 18, 2024
While Aurora has no plans to actively assist federal deportation efforts, she emphasized that the city would not obstruct the Trump administration’s policies.
Johnston reaffirmed Denver’s commitment to its sanctuary city status, emphasizing that it is a core value. “The short answer is, we won’t change that, because those are one of our core values. And we’re not going to sell out those values to anyone. We’re not going to be bullied into changing them,” he said.
Local law enforcement, Johnston added, will not assist federal agencies in making arrests of illegal migrants. “Absolutely not,” he stated.
The mayor’s remarks have drawn criticism from multiple quarters. Xi Van Fleet, a survivor of Mao Zedong’s revolution in China, condemned Johnston’s comparison to Tiananmen Square, calling it “profoundly ignorant” or a deliberate false analogy.
Elon Musk, recently appointed by Trump to lead the new Department of Government Efficiency, also weighed in, stating on his platform X, “The mayor of Denver hates his constituents.”
The mayor of Denver hates his constituents
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 22, 2024
The Trump administration has signaled its intent to take strong measures against sanctuary cities.
Tom Homan, Trump’s pick for “border czar,” told The Post that the administration plans to pursue lawsuits and withhold federal funding from cities like Denver.
If such actions fail, he said, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers will be deployed in large numbers to wait outside local jails for illegal migrants upon their release.
“We’re not going to back down,” Homan said. “This administration will enforce the laws that the American people voted for.”
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Johnston has since walked back his comments.
Can someone explain to @denversmayor what illegal means? Democrats can mislabel terms all they want, but you're either in this country legally or illegally. If you want to be here, there's a proper way to go about it. Those who took the shortcut need to leave.
As for Johnston,… https://t.co/tQWI8Os0O6— Ava Flanell (@AvaFlanell_) November 23, 2024
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If that’s the hill he has chosen to lose his life on so be it better write your will, there are far more people in your city that wants those moochers out than you can imagine.
I hope he and his family have a real good security detail.
The mayor says he will not allow ICE to arrest any illegal alien invader criminals in his city. Maybe he needs to be reminded that entering this country illegally is a FEDERAL crime so these are FEDERAL criminals and he has no jurisdiction over FEDERAL ICE agents. He can instruct his law enforcement agencies not to co-operate with ICE but if he or any of his agencies interfere with ICE they are interfering with the duties of a FEDERAL agency and he should and will be held accountable under the Trump administration. AG Pam Bondi will be coming for him and all of the other stupid left wing crybaby Governors and Mayors who say the same thing.
He’s being paid off by the Venezuelans gangs, They’ve got the money and backing of the DNC. How else were they able to acquire semi auto pistols and rifles to terrorize the residents of apartment complexes in Aurora and Denver. They couldn’t walk into Bass Pro or Sportsman’s warehouse and buy guns. And the Denver cops and State Police claim ignorance ??? Not likely they’ve known about the gangs since they showed up in the area.
There is no such thing in the USA as a sanctuary city and this mayor will find out the hard way shortly.
He wants the grant money used to support the illegals, people like this mayor and his cronies are profiting and could care less about the legal Amercian citizens.