Over the past four years, states across the country have been under assault from a federal government intent on eviscerating the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, especially the 10th Amendment. Thankfully, the Trump administration has begun to reverse this dangerous trend, and not a moment too soon for my state of Oklahoma, which had been locked in a battle with the previous administration over the authority to enforce a law to protect our citizens from the harmful effects of the crisis at the southern border.
At my request, the Oklahoma legislature last year passed House Bill 4156 to crack down on our state’s proliferation of illegal marijuana farms by enabling state law enforcement to detain and incarcerate illegal immigrants, many of whom wind up working these clandestine operations. This bill was a reasoned, directed response to the porous southern border under the Biden administration. Amid an unprecedented immigration influx, our state grappled with startling and significant public safety issues, forcing us to address the consequences of the federal government’s border failures as best we could.
HB 4156 is a powerful tool to combat those foreign nationals who enter and remain in this country illegally and who become involved in criminal activity such as unlawful marijuana grows, fentanyl distribution, sex trafficking, and more. The measure did not conflict with federal law; instead, Oklahoma was exercising our concurrent and complementary power as a sovereign state to tackle an ongoing public crisis within our borders through appropriate legislation.
As was its modus operandi, the Biden administration refused to work with states to end the border crisis or to allow local authorities to use any and all tools to protect their respective communities. President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice threatened that “if you have not confirmed … that Oklahoma will forbear such enforcement [of the law], the United States will pursue all appropriate legal remedies to ensure that Oklahoma does not interfere with the function of the federal government.”
My office informed the DOJ that if it brought a lawsuit against this commonsense and necessary bill, we would vigorously defend our state and its people. Indeed, the DOJ did challenge the law, and we immediately engaged in defending HB 4156. I am confident that, in the end, we would have emerged victorious, although months of enforcement have been wasted.
Amid this legal fight — one of many waged between the Biden administration and sovereign states over a myriad of laws — President Donald Trump took office and proclaimed that “the current situation at the southern border qualifies as an invasion under Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution of the United States.” That executive order signaled the start of a new day for public safety in Oklahoma.
Under the leadership of Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi, the DOJ earlier this month dismissed its opposition to this commonsense law, finally opening the door for our state’s law enforcement agencies to crack down on the illegal marijuana operations that have, for too long, infested our communities. This action from the Trump administration marks the start of a new day for public safety in Oklahoma.
It’s important to note that the previous administration didn’t just have a disagreement of policy with our state, but it was actively blocking Oklahoma’s ability to protect its people. This dereliction of duty from the Biden-Harris administration in securing the border was endangering the lives and livelihoods of innocent men, women, and children throughout Oklahoma. And these federal officials were essentially telling state and local leaders, like me, we had to stand by and watch the suffering that was taking place around us. I, along with many of my fellow attorneys general, could not play along, and that is why we fought against many of the intolerable actions from the previous administration, including its baffling challenge to HB 4156.
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Our experience with the previous administration and the carnage afforded to our state because of the federal government’s outright rejection of the U.S. Constitution has given us a renewed appreciation of the Trump-Vance administration, one that transcends political party affiliation. During his first term in office, Trump developed a rapport with the states — the “laboratories of democracy” that we are often called — to uphold the 10th Amendment and allow our jurisdictions to operate within the fullness of our constitutional authorities.
I am grateful that the president has quickly returned the federal government’s commitment and focus to that model. It is a sorely needed change for our country, our states, and the countless laws meant to safeguard our citizens. My office looks forward to this continued federal-state partnership as we work to protect our constituents and this country we love.
Gentner Drummond is attorney general of Oklahoma.