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Officials in New York City and Chicago are feeling the political heat over their policies giving billions of tax dollars to illegal aliens while taking benefits away from their citizens, and now both cities are pushing policies that may lead people to assume they are toughening their stance on illegals. But a close look at the policies shows what a sham these ballyhooed policies really are.
Both of these deep blue, Democrat-dominated towns have made what might at first glance seem to be an about face on their generous treatment of illegal immigrants. In Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson has been all over the news, pounding podiums and beating his chest over his plans to “evict” illegal aliens who have stayed too long in city-sponsored shelters.
In this photo provided by the Office of the Mayor New York, New York Mayor Eric Adams visits with asylum seekers taking shelter at James Madison High School, in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024. (Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office via AP)
Meanwhile, New York’s liberal Mayor Eric Adams is making political hay over his claim to be revisiting the city’s loose “right to shelter” rules and tightening the restrictions to exclude certain illegal aliens, because, he says, the right to shelter law was meant for citizens who are down on their luck, not illegal aliens breaking our laws to get here.
Both of these new rules seem to be an about face for the welcoming policies the cities have heretofore deployed. But a closer look shows that the tough stance that these two mayors are playing up is about an inch deep.
Venezuelan migrants who had been bused to New York from the Texas border refuse to leave for a city run migrant shelter in Brooklyn after being kicked out of their rooms at the Watson Hotel, February 1, 2023, in midtown New York City, New York. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)
In New York City, for example, Mayor Adams insisted last week that the city’s right to shelter rules were never meant for illegal aliens. And he said he intends to start a new policy that would kick out illegals who stay more than 30 days at a city shelter.
“‘Right to shelter’ was never intended to apply to a population larger than most U.S. cities descending on the five boroughs in less than two years,” Adams said in a statement, according to the New York Post.
“Today’s stipulation acknowledges that reality and grants us additional flexibility during times of crisis, like the national humanitarian crisis we are currently experiencing,” he added.
While it may sound like a strong statement, a look at the reality of the policy shows that it has many caveats and exclusions on just who can be evicted.
Per the Post, “Under the terms of the settlement, New York City will now essentially be allowed to limit whether a single adult migrant can reapply for shelter after their 30-day stay expires.”
But the paper went on to note that the 30-day tough love policy will not be visited upon migrant families with children.
Further, the policy will not prevent these migrants from simply moving on to another city shelter. Barring that, and, maybe even worse, it would just dump these migrants onto the streets where they will remain a burden to society.
Migrants are camped outside of the 1st District police station, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)
A similar game is being played out in Chicago where Mayor Brandon Johnson is also set to enforce a short stay order that would evict migrants from shelters and out onto the streets.
Johnson, too, is trying to sound tough on illegal immigrants after months of being called too generous with city tax dollars.
The Windy City mayor proudly told reporters last week that “We’re providing temporary emergency shelter with the goal and the expectation that people can move on.”
Mayor Brandon Johnson listens to debate over funding for migrant aid in Chicago City Council chambers on May 31, 2023. (Getty Images)
But in reality, the policy is tailored so far fewer migrants will be evicted from shelters than expected.
On Friday, Johnson amended the policy to exclude migrants with families. Worse, once evicted, each of these migrants can just reapply to a different shelter and start their 30-day clock all over again.
In the end, Johnson only served 35 of the estimated 11,200 migrants with an eviction notice on Sunday when he launched his evictions policy.
Chicago is also suffering a measles outbreak, many cases of which have been found in the city’s migrant shelters. The outbreak is so alarming that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has sent a team to the city to monitor the disease.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Facebook at: facebook.com/Warner.Todd.Huston, or Truth Social @WarnerToddHuston.
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