by Michael Lyle, Nevada Current

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford says he intends to be a “bulwark” against President-elect Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda and attacks on other marginalized communities. 

The Democratic Association of Attorneys General, which Ford co-chairs, recently said it is prepared to form “a line of defense against Trump” and challenge the incoming administration. 

A second Trump administration could see mass deportations, further restrictions on access to abortion, rolled back environmental regulations, LGBTQ+ rights challenged, and consumer protections stripped away, attorneys with the group warned.   

Many of the attorneys general part of the association represent blue-leaning states with Democratic governors, unlike Ford. 

Gov. Joe Lombardo has previously failed to answer questions about how his office will respond to Trump pledging to deploy the state’s National Guard to carry out mass deportations in the state. An estimated 189,000 people in Nevada are undocumented.  

John Sadler, a spokesman in Ford’s office, told Nevada Current in an email Tuesday Ford’s position and actions remain independent from other state and federal elected officials. He said Ford’s actions “are not controlled by the positions or opinions of other elected officials.” 

“While we do not deeply delve into legal hypotheticals, the Office of the Attorney General has power to take legal action in many cases based only on the volition of the attorney general,” Sadler said. 

Democratic state attorneys general filed a total of 155 lawsuits in the previous Trump administration. 

Under Ford, who was elected two years into Trump’s term, Nevada directly joined 33 lawsuits to challenge myriad Trump administration policies, including changes to the public charge rule to deny resident status for immigrants who rely on public assistance.

In a statement to the Current, Ford said his office is prepared to “use the full power of the law if and when it is necessary to stand up against any more erosion of legal norms and statutes.”

“It would be a lie to say that President-elect Trump’s upcoming term does not concern me, based on his prior disregard for the law,” Ford said. “Though there are many areas which concern me, including reproductive rights and antitrust protections, I will pay close attention to any action that seems like it may run afoul of the law.” 

In addition to the National Guard, Trump has repeatedly threatened to use local law enforcement and possibly the military to carry out mass deportations against the estimated 11 million of undocumented immigrants in America. 

He vowed on the campaign trail to begin mass deportation on “day one.” 

Since being elected to serve a second term, Trump’s rhetoric has only increased. 

Tom Homan, Trump’s previous head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, was selected to be the incoming “border czar,” which is not an official cabinet-level position. 

Homan, who has warned that entire mixed-status families could be deported regardless of citizenship, has further alarmed immigrant communities.

Ford addressed the rising dread in a social media post on Monday, in which he described an “atmosphere of fear and uncertainty for many Nevadans,” specifically noting rhetoric against immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community and communities of color.

He added that hopes the concerns are unfounded and that the Trump administration “does not vilify the communities that have been targets of hateful animus.”

“Make no mistake, my office stands ready for the alternative and we will be a bulwark against any effort to impose unconstitutional mandates, override our system of checks and balances, or intrude upon the rights of any Nevada resident,” Ford wrote.

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