CNN Legal Analyst Stunned By ‘Extraordinary’ Donald Trump Move That’s ‘Sent Shockwaves'
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Former prosecutor Elie Honig described it as "very heavy-handed."
CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig on Wednesday flagged what he described as an “extraordinary” element of a new three-page memo released by the Justice Department which forms a key part of returning President Donald Trump’s actions against immigration.
Acting deputy Attorney General Emil Bove’s memo giving federal prosecutors the power to investigate local officials for alleged obstruction of immigration enforcement “sent shockwaves through the legal and political world,” Honig said on CNN’s “Newsnight.”
“Part of it is completely normal,” acknowledged Honig, who himself is a former federal and state prosecutor. The business-as-usual part is Trump’s second administration “doing what all new administrations do, saying we are going to prioritize this type of crime. Sometimes it’s financial crime, public corruption. Here, it’s immigration,” he explained.
The “extraordinary” part, though, per Honig, is the Justice Department essentially saying: “‘Hey, locals, state and local authorities,’ and by the way, I was federal and state so I can see this from both sides. ‘If you get in our way, if you obstruct what we’re doing, we might prosecute you.’”
“Now, it’s normal to say, ‘OK we’re the feds, we have this priority. State and locals, we would love your help. We will solicit your help. We expect your help,’” Honig continued. “But to threaten them with prosecution, that is very heavy-handed. And I understand why there’s been a lot of pushback to it.”
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