U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, held a hearing on Mar. 10 titled “Sanctuary Cities: The Cost of Undermining Law and Order,” focusing on the impact of sanctuary city policies across the United States.
The topic is significant as more than two hundred cities and twelve states have adopted sanctuary policies, which Graham said create incentives for illegal immigration and pose risks to public safety. Graham said, “We’ll never fix illegal immigration, until [we] get to the source of the problem. And one of the problems we have is magnets to encourage future illegal immigration.”
During the hearing, Graham cited statistics regarding criminal activity and financial costs associated with sanctuary jurisdictions. He said, “We believe [sanctuary cities] endanger public safety. [There have been] 10,000 criminals released by sanctuary policies who went on to be arrested for additional crimes. They should have been turned over, [but] they weren’t. They stayed in the country, and they committed crimes. Nine billion [dollars] in fraud — that we know of — and probably growing. Fifty-nine percent of illegal immigrant households [are] on government welfare programs costing taxpayers $42 billion a year.”
Graham discussed a recent case involving Abdul Jalloh, an undocumented immigrant from Sierra Leone with a criminal record who murdered Stephanie Minter in Virginia after local authorities did not transfer him for deportation due to sanctuary policy. Graham said, “We had this man in detention in Fairfax County, [Virginia], and they refused to turn him over for deportation. He was allowed to stay in the county, and the rest is history. A young mom is dead because of that decision.” He continued by questioning the rationale behind retaining individuals with violent histories: “How many people need to be stabbed before a guy like that is deported? And what’s the upside of keeping him here? Is this the model citizen we want to keep in America? Now, there’s an ideology around sanctuary cities that needs to be broken, and we’re here to break it.”
The hearing also addressed political disagreements over funding for border enforcement agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Graham criticized Senate Democrats’ demands requiring ICE to obtain judicial warrants instead of administrative ones for deportations: “When President Obama deported 3 million people, it was called being strong and good government. When [Republicans] try to deport people…we’re [called] nazis and bad guys. I don’t buy that at all.” In an exchange with witness Bier about past practices under President Obama’s administration regarding judicial warrants for interior deportations, Bier confirmed no such warrants were used.
Graham concluded by expressing his view on partisan divides: “This hearing to me is stunning. I’m so glad we had it. [Democrats are] ‘all-in’ on sanctuary city policies… To America, if you’re looking for anybody to change this system, our Democratic friends have no interest…I don’t.”
Graham has focused on robust national defense and fiscal responsibility during his tenure according to his official website. He leads as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee according to his official website and released updated legislative text for a border-security funding bill in June 2025 according to his official website. Graham operates within U.S. government as a senator according to his official website, was first elected in 2002 according to his official website, and represents South Carolina according to his official website.
