U.S. Rep. Tim Moore of North Carolina said Thursday he is in support of U.S. Border Patrol operations in Charlotte, drawing a stark contrast to local elected officials who have pointed to “fear and uncertainty” among immigrants.
Moore, a Republican who represents parts of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, said his office had reached out to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for further information on the reported operation.
“I’m glad that they’re looking at doing that, and I’m glad at the way they’re approaching it,” Moore told reporters in Raleigh.
Moore predicted the agency would likely stay “for a while” and focus on organized crime and high-profile targets. That would largely be a departure from Border Patrol’s month-long Chicago campaign, which has involved street sweeps and resulted in mass arrests, including hundreds who a judge says were wrongfully detained. The operation has prompted widespread protests and multiple court interventions.
Moore said he didn’t expect operations in Charlotte, if they do take place, to encounter such resistance.
“You may have some of that, but Charlotte is not Chicago,” Moore said. “I don’t think there will be an appetite for that. I don’t think there will be patience for folks who get out there and violate the law themselves, interfering with a valid law enforcement activity.”
CBS first reported this week that the agency is planning to move agents into Charlotte and New Orleans. Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden confirmed November 8 that agents would start arriving as soon as the weekend of November 15.
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has said it doesn’t comment on future plans or operations. Mayor Vi Lyles said Wednesday she was aware of the reports and that Charlotte was “committed to following the law and to protecting the rights of all people who call our city home.”
The office of U.S. Rep. Alma Adams, a Democrat who represents much of Charlotte, did not respond to a request for comment Thursday. The congresswoman’s public social media accounts have not posted about the reported operations as of November 13.
And state Rep. Carla Cunningham (D-Mecklenburg), in a brief interview with NC Newsline, said the report of the CBP operations “hasn’t been verified.” McFadden issued his statement confirming the agency’s plan later Thursday.
“I’m going to be keeping my eyes on my own safety for right now,” Cunningham said, when asked for her reaction to the reported plans.
Cunningham has said she received threats after breaking with her Democratic colleagues to support state efforts to crack down on immigration enforcement. During a July vote to require local law enforcement to cooperate with ICE, she said in a floor speech that immigrants “must assimilate” and “adapt to the culture they wish to live in.”
In a joint statement released November 11, a group of Charlotte-area officials said that local and state law enforcement do not control, direct or participate in federal operations. And the group, including council members, Democratic state lawmakers and a school board member, pledged to support the city’s immigrant communities.
“We still stand together, look out for one another, and ensure that fear never divides the city we all call home,” the group said.
McFadden, the county sheriff, has previously had public disagreements with federal immigration officials about their operations in the region. In his Thursday statement, he said he had been contacted by federal agents Wednesday afternoon and his office was not asked to assist with or participate in enforcement.
Stein told reporters November 12 that if he had “absolute confidence” in immigration officials’ plan to “go and find violent dangerous drug traffickers and criminals,” then the city would “welcome them with open arms,” the Charlotte Observer reported. But the governor emphasized that “we don’t know what their plans are.”
“If they come in and they are targeted in what they do, we will thank them,” Stein said. “If they come in and wreak havoc and cause chaos and fear, we will be very concerned.”
Stein’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Even prior to reported federal immigration operations, Charlotte has emerged as the epicenter of already intense debates on how North Carolina should address both illegal immigration and violent crime.
The killing of Ukrainian immigrant Iryna Zarutska on the city’s light rail system sparked fury and frustration from state lawmakers, who convened to pass a new law changing criminal justice procedures. The state House Speaker has said he’s closely tracking violent crime in Charlotte. And a trio of Republican congressmen — U.S. Reps. Mark Harris, Pat Harrigan and Chuck Edwards — urged Gov. Josh Stein to deploy the National Guard in the city.
Moore said Thursday he had been approached by U.S. Rep. Mark Harris to sign that letter, but had declined.
The scrutiny on violent crime, Moore said, should be focused primarily on magistrate judges rather than local law enforcement. And he praised the district attorney, Democrat Spencer Merriweather, calling him a “good prosecutor.”
The city and its surrounding county have also faced criticism from Republicans aiming to clamp down on immigration enforcement. A law passed earlier this year sought to close “loopholes” in ICE detainer cases that GOP lawmakers accused several sheriffs, including in Mecklenburg County, of utilizing.
Moore, who led the House as Speaker when an earlier law dealing with detainer cases was passed, acknowledged that there was “some frustration” with the sheriff’s department on immigration enforcement.
“He’s told me what his position is, and we just have a disagreement of opinion on it,” Moore said. “Hopefully he will see the error of that as more and more crimes, more and more things are being brought to the surface about what’s happening.”
This article appears through the courtesy of our media partner NC Newsline through Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.