www.thecentersquare.com – By Kim Jarrett | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-05-30 09:49:00
Two U.S. House committees seek information on Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell’s executive order requiring city employees to report encounters with federal immigration authorities within one business day. The order, expanded after an ICE and Tennessee Highway Patrol operation in May resulting in 196 arrests, has drawn criticism from Rep. Andy Ogles, who accused O’Connell of undermining law enforcement and supporting illegal immigrants through a taxpayer-funded “Belonging Fund.” Nashville publishes immigration encounters online but has redacted officer names following concerns. The mayor’s office did not comment. A local council member has called for an audit of the fund.
(The Center Square) – Two committees in the U.S. House of Representatives want more information on an executive order issued by Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell, which they say could “chill” the enforcement of federal immigration law.
O’Connell’s order required city of Nashville employees to report any encounters with federal immigration authorities within one business day. It was amended to include all departments after an operation conducted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Tennessee Highway Patrol in early May netted 196 arrests. Some of those arrested had extensive criminal histories and some had removal orders, according to a release from ICE.
The joint letter from the Judiciary and Homeland Security committees and the Congressional Counter-Terrorism Caucus requests all documents related to the order since May 1, documents referring to the ICE operation and any documents and communications between Metro Nashville employees and others.
O’Connell has until June 12 at 5 p.m. to respond, according to the letter posted on social media by U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., chairman of the Congressional Counter-Terrorism Caucus.
“Instead of defending our state, Mayor Freddie O’Connell is sabotaging it,” Ogles said. “He’s weaponized his office to dox and surveil federal agents who are trying to stop violent criminals – and worse, he’s embraced those criminals by creating a taxpayer-funded program to aid illegal aliens. The recipients of these funds are untraceable. The purpose is crystal clear: help illegal foreigners evade the law.”
Nashville officials are publishing all encounters with immigration officers on a website. The names of some officers were listed on the site, Ogles said. The names are now redacted, according to a report from WSMV.
The Center Square was unsuccessful prior to publication of getting comment from the mayor’s office.
O’Connell also announced the “Belonging Fund” on May 5, described as a “new effort to support immigrants in Nashville during moments of crisis.” It is a partnership between the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee and the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County, according to a release.
Metro Council Member David Benton called for an audit of the fund at a Monday news conference with Ogles.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Right
The article primarily reports on the actions of Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell regarding immigration enforcement and the subsequent response from Republican members of Congress. While it mostly recounts factual events—such as the mayor’s executive order, the ICE operation, and the formation of a “Belonging Fund”—the inclusion of strong critical quotes from U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles and emphasis on the concerns of Republican officials without equivalent representation of the mayor’s or Democratic perspectives suggests a slight center-right bias. The language used in quoted criticisms (“sabotaging,” “weaponized,” “embraced those criminals”) comes from conservative sources, which the article presents without balancing counterarguments or context that might portray the mayor’s actions in a more favorable or neutral light. Overall, the piece leans toward a center-right framing by focusing on opposition to the mayor’s immigrant-friendly policies and federal enforcement interactions without equivalent explanatory or supportive commentary from proponents of those policies.
Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell is under federal scrutiny after requesting detailed information about immigrant arrests and charges in the city. Two U.S. House committees demanded documents related to his executive order requiring city personnel to report interactions with immigration officials within 24 hours. The Trump administration accuses O’Connell of hindering immigration enforcement, labeling Nashville, along with Shelby County, on a controversial sanctuary city list, later removed following law enforcement pushback. O’Connell denies the sanctuary city label, emphasizing compliance with state law and cooperation with federal agencies. Criticism from federal officials and Tennessee Republicans has intensified, amid political tensions over immigration enforcement in Nashville.
In an escalation by Trump Administration officials and Republican lawmakers, two U.S. House committees have launched an inquiry into the response by Nashville’s mayor and local officials to federal immigration enforcement activities.
A letter sent Thursday by the House Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees demands a series of documents from the office of Mayor Freddie O’Connell by June 12.
They include documents related to the mayor’s executive order requiring city emergency personnel to report interactions with federal immigration officials within 24 hours. The committees are also demanding all communications between city officials and other organizations and individuals regarding federal immigration activities during the month of May.
The letter accuses the mayor of actions that “threaten to chill immigration enforcement in the City of Nashville and Davidson County.”
O’Connell, during a regularly scheduled news conference on Friday, said he intends to “appropriately respond.”
“I am not particularly concerned,” the mayor said in response to a reporter’s question about the inquiry.
“We’re going to respond appropriately to all inquiries, and we have been guided by a full understanding of state and federal law and we will continue to be,” he said.
The letter was sent to O’Connell the same day the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released a list of hundreds of U.S. cities, counties and several states that Trump Administration officials accused of “deliberately and shamefully obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws endangering American communities.”
Nashville, along with Shelby County in West Tennessee, was on the list.
But in a reversal over the weekend, the list was removed from the agency’s website. Reuters reported Sunday that the list was taken down after DHS received pushback from the National Sheriff’s Association, which issued a statement noting that local law enforcement had not been consulted before the sanctuary city list was made public and that it “violated the core principles of trust, cooperation, and partnership with fellow law enforcement.”
On Friday, O’Connell held in his hand a copy of Tennessee law barring sanctuary status, a designation that typically limits cooperation between cities and federal immigration officials, noting that Nashville has not engaged in any of the actions barred by the legislation.
“By definition Nashville is not a sanctuary city,” the mayor said. “We do not, nor have we ever had a policy that violates state law.”
“As we’ve stated several times in recent weeks, Metro (Nashville) does not have any legal authority as it relates to immigration enforcement and we do not impede federal law enforcement actions,” O’Connell said. “In fact we regularly partner with state and federal agencies to take violent criminals off our streets. This is the reality.”
O’Connell also noted that both violent and property crimes in Nashville are significantly down from prior years.
The mayor’s remarks came at the end of a week marked by escalating attacks against him by top federal immigration officials as well as Tennessee Republican U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles.
During a Memorial Day press conference, Ogles accused O’Connell, a Democrat, of “aiding and abetting illegal immigration.”
Subsequently, White House “border czar” Tom Homan warned that immigration agents would “flood the zone” in Nashville seemingly in retaliation for the mayor’s perceived political stance against mass immigration detainments.
And on Thursday a Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary for public affairs accused O’Connell of “harboring” immigrants without legal status and “doxxing” immigration enforcement agents.
O’Connell has drawn the ire of Republicans for two actions: during mass immigration stops in Nashville earlier this month, O’Connell issued a revised executive order requiring the city’s emergency personnel – and some non-emergency employees – to report any interaction with federal immigration officials within 24 hours.
The city then posted a list of those interactions on its web site. Initially the names or partial names of four federal immigration staffers appeared on that list in error, city officials said. The names have since been removed.
O’Connell also publicized a fund established by the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee to assist family members of those detained by immigration authorities. While Trump Administration officials accused O’Connell of using public funds to support immigrants without legal status, the fund operates only with private donations, a foundation spokesperson said.
Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.
Political Bias Rating: Center-Left
This article presents a narrative that highlights the conflict between Nashville’s Democratic mayor and federal immigration officials linked to the Trump Administration and Republican lawmakers. The framing emphasizes the mayor’s defense of city policies as lawful and cooperative with federal law enforcement, while portraying federal officials’ actions as aggressive or retaliatory. The language and selection of details—such as the removal of a controversial “sanctuary city” list and the focus on accusations against the mayor by conservative figures—suggest a sympathetic portrayal of local leadership and criticism of federal immigration enforcement efforts. Overall, the piece leans moderately left by focusing on the mayor’s perspective and concerns about federal overreach, without adopting extreme ideological rhetoric.
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