Democratic governors and mayors prepare to challenge Trump’s massive deportation plan

Various Democratic governors and mayors across the country are getting ready to challenge President-elect Donald Trump's the mass deportation plan. 

Boston's Democratic mayor, Michelle Wu, was the latest to threaten not to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) because the city, in her words, will remain a "sanctuary" for illegal immigrants.

In an interview Sunday for WCVB, Wu was asked about Trump's deportation plan and mentioned that her city will not cooperate with the incoming Trump administration on deportations.

"Elections have consequences, and the federal government is responsible for a certain set of actions, and cities, no individual city, can reverse or override some parts of that," Wu said.

"But what we can do is make sure that we are doing our part to protect our residents in every possible way, that we are not cooperating with those efforts that actually threaten the safety of everyone by causing widespread fear and and having large scale economic impact," she added.

Wu then explained that immigrants who came to Boston were already residents and part of the community.

"And then we are providing the spaces to reach out directly to our residents, because the last thing we want is for people who are part of our economy, part of our school system, part of our community and the fabric of our city, to feel that all of a sudden they have to retreat into the shadows with because of fear that reaching out to city services, whether it's calling 911, when you need it, or taking your child to school, those are all city services that have nothing to do with immigration enforcement, and we will continue to protect our residents within those spaces."

In addition to Wu, other Democratic governors said publicly that they will oppose Trump's immigration policies energetically.

"Absolutely not," Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey said last week on MSNBC, when asked if she will cooperate with the next administration's deportations.

"The key here is that every tool in the toolbox is going to be used to protect our citizens, to protect our residents and protect our states, and certainly to hold the line on democracy and the rule of law as a basic principle," Healey said.

Two more Democratic governors, Phil Murphy of New Jersey and JB Pritzker of Illinois, joined Healey.

Murphy said he is "willing to try anything" to stop Trump's immigration plans, including mass deportations.

"If it’s contrary to our values, we’ll fight to the death," Murphy told reporters last week. "If there is an opportunity for common ground, we’ll seize that as fast as anybody."

For his part, JB Pritzker was just as blunt: "You come for my people, you come through me."

Despite his harsh statements, it is still unclear how Democratic mayors and governors can act to curb Trump's immigration policies.