Sessions can prosecute sanctuary cities without further acts of Congress

Washington Times:

Sen. Jeff Sessions is on record saying so-called “sanctuary cities” that protect illegal immigrants should be prosecuted. He himself may get that chance next year.

Mr. Sessions is president-elect Donald Trump’s pick to be the next attorney general, and if he’s confirmed — a very large if, at this point — he will mark a 180-degree turn from the Obama administration on a host of issues, but nowhere more so than on immigration, where he’s been the Senate’s leading crackdown proponent.

From his first day in office, Mr. Sessions will have the power to strip some federal funding from sanctuary cities, thanks to rulings this year by the Justice Department’s inspector general, who said federal law requires localities to cooperate with immigration agents — and who provided an initial list of a handful of the worst offenders.

“The sanctuary cities thing is huge. I think most jurisdictions are going to fold like a cheap suit,” said Rosemary Jenks, government relations manager at NumbersUSA, which lobbies for stricter immigration laws.

Some sanctuary cities have already said they’ll resist any effort to change their behavior. They are being prodded by immigrant rights advocates who are calling on Senate Democrats to deny Mr. Sessions the chance to be attorney general, saying he represents a massive step backward for the Justice Department.
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He would also be the chief decider for legal strategy, and legal scholars said they expect him to halt the Obama administration’s practice of “sue-and-settle,” where agencies whose hands are tied invite a lawsuit from interest groups, then quickly agree to settle the case.

Sue-and-settle has been most prominently used by environmental groups who sue the Environmental Protection Agency, forcing new regulations and environmental restrictions that would otherwise have trouble getting through the bureaucracy.
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This is why the Democrats are trotting out their bogus charges of racism against Sen. Sessions.  They are in abject panic because of the power they gave Obama to deal with these issues can now be turned against them.

As noted in a previous post, former Gov. Bobby Jindal has suggested that the mayors of sanctuary cities be prosecuted as accessories to crimes committed by illegal aliens.  That would probably take an act of Congress.  It would probably get more compliance than just pulling their federa funds which they would argue would hurt the poor.