JD Vance Accuses Sanctuary Cities of Reviving Nullification Against Federal Immigration Law

Students of American history recall the nullification crisis of the 1830s, when South Carolina claimed the right to void federal law within its borders. President Andrew Jackson upheld federal authority, South Carolina retreated, and the crisis ended without violence.

The Civil War three decades later ended any notion that states could nullify federal law. Supreme Court rulings in the 1950s and President Dwight D. Eisenhower's deployment of the National Guard in Little Rock, Arkansas, further buried the idea.

JD Vance now sees radical Democrats opening a new front in the nullification battle over criminal aliens and sanctuary jurisdictions.

Sanctuary areas from California to Virginia, all under Democratic control, have policies that block federal immigration enforcement. These places bar local law enforcement from cooperating or even talking with federal immigration officials. States like Washington and Colorado stop jails from holding criminal aliens for federal pickup. Minnesota officials push to limit where and how federal agents can enforce immigration law.

By sheltering illegal aliens, including violent criminals, child abusers, and drug traffickers, and blocking federal enforcement, these jurisdictions treat federal immigration law as void inside their borders.

The Constitution makes federal law supreme, and Democratic claims of states' rights or the anti-commandeering doctrine do not hold up. At least one-third of Americans live in areas that ignore federal immigration law. For them, sanctuary policies can mean life or death.

In Fairfax County, Virginia, prosecutor Steve Descano campaigned on charging decisions to avoid immigration fallout. In December 2025, his office dropped assault charges against an alleged MS-13 gang member and released him despite a federal request to detain the illegal alien. The next day, that gang member allegedly murdered someone. Had Fairfax not been a sanctuary jurisdiction, federal authorities could have taken custody and prevented the killing.

Sanctuary rules also endanger police. In Denver, officials released an illegal alien and suspected Tren de Aragua gang member instead of letting federal agents pick him up in jail. When agents tried to arrest him on the street, he fled and assaulted an officer. Cooperation could have avoided the attack.

Sanctuary policies draw more illegal immigrants by promising safe haven. During the Biden administration, record numbers crossed the border knowing sanctuary spots would protect them. Countless illegal aliens, including criminals and terrorists, entered over those four years.

The modern Democratic Party backs open borders and unlimited illegal immigration, demonizes federal immigration officers, and cuts funding for enforcement. It puts criminal aliens ahead of American safety.

Nullification died with secessionists and segregationists long ago. Radical Democrats now revive it to shield criminal aliens from federal law. That endangers public safety.