Trump blasts North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper for vetoing bill forcing sheriffs to cooperate with ICE

President Donald Trump has criticized North Carolina’s governor for vetoing a bill that would have required the state’s sheriffs to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

‘This is a terrible decision for the great people of North Carolina. He should reverse his decision and get back to the basics of fighting crime!’ Trump said of Democrat Governor Roy Cooper. 

On Wednesday, Cooper vetoed HB 370, which would have required sheriffs to recognize requests by federal immigration agents to hold jail inmates believed to be in the country illegally.

President Donald Trump has criticized North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper (right) for vetoing a bill that would have required the state’s sheriffs to cooperate with

 

The detainers ask that a suspect be held up to 48 hours for pickup. 

They aren’t arrest warrants, so currently they can be ignored if sheriffs choose to or are order to by local governments. 

The bill’s Republican sponsors said sheriffs should work with ICE and vowed to override the veto.

‘Law enforcement officers have a sworn responsibility to protect their citizens — and that includes cooperating with federal authorities,’ state Sen. Chuck Edwards, a Republican from Henderson County, told the Charlotte Observer. 

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers escort a man in handcuffs during an operation in Escondido, California in July

‘Governor Cooper, who prefers to pander to his far-left supporters, we will protect North Carolinians and plan to override his irresponsible veto,’ Edwards said. 

The North Carolina Sheriffs’ Association, which supported the bill, said in a brief statement it ‘regrets’ Cooper’s veto. 

Trump is currently in France for an international summit.