As President-elect Donald Trump nominates radicals to back his tough talk of mass deportation, federal, state and local officials are hiring additional staff, preparing legal arguments and preparing for the fight to protect immigrant communities in Colorado.

“We’re looking at every possible way for them to attack our community, so I don’t think we should rule anything out at this point,” said Democratic Rep. Jason Crow, who represents Aurora in Congress. “We will use all our tools and all our available power to protect the families and people in our community who need our protection.”

in 2019State Attorney General Phil Weiser took the Trump administration to court over its punitive decision to withdraw federal law enforcement grants from Colorado because it was considered a “sanctuary state” by the then-administration.

In 2020, a federal judge sided with the state and forced the federal government to hand over money paid for police equipment at various agencies in the state. In his ruling, the judge said there was no legal reason for the federal government to impose restrictions on existing grants.

In an interview, Weiser said he expects such actions again.

“I believe the best sign of what we may encounter is what we have encountered before. They had agendas that were thwarted last time by the courts upholding the rule of law. “We still have checks and balances, and we will use them,” Weiser said. “We have faced challenges like this before. This is not the first time. We will be ready.”

More than 40,000 immigrants arrived in Colorado between late 2022 and 2024; most of them were Central and South Americans who had crossed the Mexican border and were then sent north from the border states by Republican governors. State and Denver officials, as well as numerous nonprofit organizations, supported the months-long crisis response, helping the newcomers with everything from clothing, shelter, food and job placement.

During the crush, Governor Jared Polis and Denver Mayors Michael Hancock and Mike Johnston set up offices to handle logistics. There is now some concern that the new presidential administration may threaten the state to hand over data it has collected on families receiving assistance.

Weiser said he would oppose it.

“One of the fundamental foundations is that we live under the rule of law; “No matter who you are and no matter what party you support, you should be treated fairly like everyone else, and if we start to see arbitrary actions based on who you are, that’s a fundamental threat to the American system,” he said. “And I would take that seriously.”

Hart Van Denburg/CPR News

Colorado’s commitment to helping newcomers won’t change based on politics, state officials from Polis’ Office of New Americans wrote in a 2024 report released before the election.

“The one thing that will not change is Colorado’s commitment to the integration of new Americans,” he said.

In an interview with Colorado Matters, Polis said he would welcome the federal government’s assistance in eliminating criminals and gang members; but beyond that, the governor said, there would be a fight.

“Frankly, he’s afraid that he’s talking about going after law-abiding Coloradans who may have lived here for 20, 30 years, who work as construction workers, in agriculture or in the hospitality industry,” police said. “And if someone were to come in and take our neighbors away from us by force, that would obviously devastate our economy and our society.”

On the campaign trail earlier this year, Trump called Aurora a “war zone” because of Venezuelan immigrants, a handful of whom were arrested and linked to gang activity. He promised to carry out “Operation Aurora” to ensure that every undocumented immigrant with gang ties across the country leaves the country. But how the administration will determine gang affiliation is an open question.

Trump’s selection of border czar Tom Homan imposed a policy of separating families at the border and a “remain in Mexico” policy; This means that people seeking asylum in the United States will have to wait in Mexico until their asylum requests are resolved. decision has been made.

It is not yet known what steps Trump will take toward mass deportation to fulfill his campaign promises. He has a poor track record of meeting his commitments. For example, there is no full wall along the border, and Mexico certainly did not pay for it. 52 miles of new primary border wall this was completed in his first term.

Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite

But if he wants to conduct a mass roundup in Colorado, he seems likely to need help from local and state officials for at least detention facilities, and state law prohibits law enforcement from working with immigration officials. In the past, Aurora police Chief Todd Chamberlain has said he only believes in law enforcement, not immigration enforcement.

Since Trump’s election, both he and Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman have declined media interviews about how they would handle possible federal requests to assist with immigration enforcement.

When asked about a potential “Operation Aurora” and how it would work with Aurora law enforcement, an Aurora police spokesperson said: “Chief Chamberlain is not interested in participating in an interview regarding this matter at this time.”

The city released a statement saying they would “work with our federal partners and follow federal laws and directives that apply to our community.”

Omar Montgomery, who leads the Aurora NAACP and also works for the city’s chamber of commerce, said he is concerned about potential workforce issues if there is a “roundup” or large-scale crackdown.

“We have to be smart,” he said. “I hope our city council sees the beauty in our diversity and does not jump on the bandwagon of those who terrorize communities. There is a way to remove criminals from our society. But let’s not terrorize entire communities. “People are just trying to live a good life and enjoy the city of Aurora.”

U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet’s office said constituents have already seen an increase in calls for immigration assistance services; This includes people concerned about family breakups and deportations.

A spokesperson from the office said they plan to hire additional people to help with call and case volume and prepare for what’s ahead.

“I’m trying to give as much assurance as I can at this point,” said Crow, who won his congressional seat for the first time during Trump’s first term. “We will do everything we can to protect families and children from attacks on people in our community, on Colorado values, and on our economy.”