This story was originally published by the WND News Center.
Denver is a far-left city in a far-left state, so its mayor, Mike Johnston, is a far-left politician.
As such he routinely makes his far-left opinions known, including on national matters.
But he may have threatened a little too much with his recent announcement that he's essentially at war with President-elect Donald Trump's plans to secure the national border and deport some, maybe many, of the illegal aliens essentially invited into the country under the Joe Biden-Kamala Harris regime in Washington.
It could even be that if he acts on his threats, charges could follow.
It is lawyer Mike Davis, who formerly worked for the Senate Judiciary Committee and clerked for Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, who pointed out Johnston's plans could make him liable for allegations of conspiracy, obstruction and even assault on federal officers.
A report in Denverite explained that Denver has many programs, and a reputation, for being "where new immigrants can find legal help and maybe even a job without contact fear of authorities."
So will that change when President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January, and begins cracking down on illegal aliens, deporting some and punishing cities that protect their criminal status?
Johnston said, "The short answer is, we won't change that, because those are one of our core values. And we're not going to sell out those values to anyone. We're not going to be bullied into changing them."
He made a commitment: "I think we are gonna continue to be a welcoming, open, big-hearted city that's gonna stand by our values."
He also said his administration is identifying budget items that could be impacted by Trump's promise to defund sanctuary cities, those locations that protect illegal aliens.
He advocated for procedures that would ignore a person's illegal alien status should police notice "a busted taillight" and such, the report said.
But there probably will be a fight over work authorization, a category that the city has helped immigrants negotiate requirements.
The report explained, "But Trump has said he plans to take away work authorization from people who illegally entered the country. Blocking new immigrants from the right to work would 'cripple the American economy,' Johnston said. Without work authorization, Johnston said, people would have to rely on public support to get by."
And will Denver help with enforcing immigration laws?
"Absolutely not. We won't do it," Johnston said.
He said he doubts federal forces would raid Colorado seeking illegal aliens.
"I do not believe that our governor is going to let them use our [Colorado] National Guard at the state level. Unless they were planning on bringing national guards mobilized from Texas or Alabama to come invade Colorado, I don't know where they would find the forces to begin to do that."
Johnston continued, "And that seems to me like a very, very bad idea from start to finish that no reasonable American would support."
He said not only would his administration, but the people of Denver, would resist deportation procedures by federal forces.
"More than us having (Denver police) stationed at the county line to keep them out, you would have 50,000 Denverites there. It's like the Tiananmen Square moment with the rose and the gun, right? You'd have every one of those Highland moms who came out for the migrants. And you do not want to mess with them," he said.
Meanwhile, he's counting on Republicans in Congress and the White House for handouts to help with his plans for housing affordability.
"We'd love to look at a partnership for how they can help provide resources and support for us to bring on more housing that workers are going to need all over the state," Johnston said.
It was the Gateway Pundit that pointed to some of the holes in Johnston's plans.
"Mayor Johnston has made it clear that he will go as far as using city police and local volunteers to physically prevent the deportation of illegal immigrants, including those with potential gang affiliations," the report said.
The report accused Johnston of having plans to turn Denver "into a fortress of resistance against immigration enforcement."
The report said, "Johnston's approach, which includes using Denver's police force and even mobilizing citizens to obstruct federal operations, has drawn comparisons to lawless sanctuary cities. He boldly claimed that Denverites themselves would rise up to form a human barricade against federal authorities, invoking imagery of the infamous Tiananmen Square protests."
The report cited Davis' comments, explaining, "Johnston's defiance is not without potential consequences."
Trump already has picked former border enforcement agent Tom Homan as the "border czar" and he already has responded to a governor, JB Pritzker of Illinois, who threatened, "If you come for my people, you come through me."
Homan's response?
"Game on. We've got no problem going through him. I've got 20,000 men and women in ICE who are going to do their job with no apology. Congress has enacted a law that protects this country. People need to understand… entering this country illegally is a crime."
He added, "Every illegal alien in this country committed a crime to get here. So they're all criminals. We're gonna enforce the law without apology… and if any governor wants to stand in the way, go ahead and do it. We'll see what happens. We're not gonna be intimidated."
