California Governor Gavin Newsom is now claiming that his state “cooperates” with Immigration and Customs Enforcement — despite years of fiery anti-ICE rhetoric, sanctuary laws, and violent riots that broke out under his watch in response to federal immigration enforcement.
In a sit-down interview with Ben Shapiro, Newsom attempted to rebrand California’s relationship with ICE. Pressed on the state’s status as a sanctuary for illegal immigrants and a hotbed of anti-federal hostility, Newsom responded, “We work very directly with ICE as it relates to [California prisons]. California has cooperated with more ICE transfers than probably any other state in the country.”
He added, “I’ve vetoed multiple pieces of legislation that have come from my legislature to stop the ability for the state of California to do that.”
Newsom cited a figure of 10,000 illegal alien felons being transferred to ICE custody during his tenure. But according to data from the Center for Immigration Studies, California has also refused to honor over 13,000 ICE detainer requests since late 2022 — far more than any other state — and released dozens of illegal aliens with homicide charges or convictions back onto the streets.
Ben Shapiro: “There have been a number of deportations from red states… California is a sanctuary state… What’s the purpose of that?… Wouldn’t best policy be to cooperate with ICE?”
Gov. Gavin Newsom: “We work very directly with ICE as it relates to… state prison.”
Ben… pic.twitter.com/egeHMPUYSR
— RedWave Press (@RedWave_Press) January 16, 2026
His attempt to rewrite the narrative comes just months after Los Angeles and other cities were consumed by violent riots sparked by federal immigration operations. ICE agents were attacked. Vehicles were set ablaze. Over $30 million in damage was recorded. Yet at the time, Newsom’s press office blamed federal law enforcement, describing the fatal shooting of an anti-ICE agitator in Minneapolis as “state-sponsored terrorism” and accusing ICE of acting as Donald Trump’s “personal police force.”
Now, under public scrutiny, Newsom admits that those kinds of statements are fair game for criticism. “I understand that’s a fair critique,” he told Shapiro when asked about the terrorism accusation. He also pushed back on calls from fellow Democrats to abolish ICE entirely, saying he disagrees with that position.
Newsom has gone back and forth for years — from blasting ICE as cruel and extremist to now claiming California is leading the nation in cooperation with the very agency he and his party have vilified.
His defense? California’s prison system hands over violent criminals. But critics point to sanctuary laws that prevent local jails and law enforcement from notifying ICE about criminal aliens. Even when detainers are issued, the state routinely refuses to honor them.
In one of the most glaring contradictions, Newsom signed a bill last fall banning ICE officers from wearing masks — even as assaults and threats against agents were rising. The move came just weeks after officers were swarmed in Los Angeles during a mass protest. Newsom claimed at the time that Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard to protect federal facilities was “inflammatory” and undermined “public trust.”
With the 2026 midterms looming and federal immigration enforcement back in the headlines, it’s clear Newsom is trying to walk a fine line — attempting to sound tough on crime while still appeasing the far-left base that made California ground zero for the sanctuary movement.
But the numbers don’t lie. And no matter how he spins it, the governor’s record tells a different story.
The post Newsom Backpedals, Claims California ‘Cooperates With ICE’ Despite Sanctuary Policies and Violent Riots appeared first on Real News Now.
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