Governor of New Jersey hints that houses an illegal migrant: ‘Good luck when trying to stop it’
The governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphyis in the center of the controversy after suggesting in an interview that a person with irregular immigration status lives in his home. The declaration has generated a strong reaction from the federal government, with Tom homanPresident border tsar Donald Trumpwarning that an investigation could lead to legal actions against Murphy. According to Newsweek, The governor made these comments last weekend during a conversation with the progressive organization Bluewavenj.
In the interview, Murphy mentioned that he and his wife discussed a person in his “circle of acquaintances” whose immigration status “is not yet at the point to which they want to take it.” Then he added: “We said, ‘Do you know what? Let’s let her live in our house on the garage. ‘ Good luck to the federals if they try to take it. ” These statements have been interpreted by some as an admission that the governor could be housing a person without documents.
Murphy’s statements have aroused doubts about whether he violated the law by suggesting that he could be housing a person without regular immigration status. Newsweek He informed that President Trump’s government is considering opening an investigation To determine if Murphy committed a federal crime. Until now, the governor’s office has not issued an official response in this regard.
Murphy’s words were immediately questioned by Republican figures and officials of the Trump administration. Tom homanwho supervises the migration policy of the White House, warned in an interview with Fox News that any official who “shelters or hides an illegal immigrant” would be violating the Code 1324 of Title 8 of the United Stateswhich penalizes aid to people without legal immigration status. “If you are ignoring the law and house an illegal immigrant, we will seek a judicial process,” said Homan.
He New Jersey Republican Assemblyman, Erik Petersonhe described Murphy’s words as “scandalous.” In statements a INSIDERJthe legislator criticized the governor, stating that, instead of enforcing state and federal laws, Murphy “is violating and encouraging others to do the same.”
Before the controversy, sources close to the governor tried to clarify the situation. A Murphy assistant told New York Post that the comments were “misunderstood” and that “nobody ever moved home, or for a month, not a week, not one day”. Fox News Digital He also cited an anonymous source that said that Murphy simply mentioned the possibility of hosting someone, but that this never happened. In addition, he assured that the person in question has a legal immigration status in the United States.
This episode develops in a context in which the president’s immigration policy has generated an intense national debate. According to Newsweeksince the beginning of the second mandate of Donald Trump, ICE has arrested more than 7,400 people under new guidelines that give it greater power to operate in places such as Schools, hospitals and religious temples. These operations have been strongly criticized by human rights defenders, who argue that they encourage fear in vulnerable communities and could violate constitutional protections against arbitrary records and arrests.
Despite criticism, the mass deportation policy has proven popular among the electorate. A survey of The New York Times and Ipsosmade between the January 2 and 10he found that 55% of voters support These plans. In addition, a 88% of respondents He supported the deportation of undocumented immigrants with a criminal record. Therefore, the statements of the governor of New Jersey wake up controversial even between affiliates to the Democratic party.
