The scene at New Orleans City Hall on Dec. 4 was a disgraceful display of chaos: anti-ICE activists poured into the council chamber, shouted down elected officials, and forced a recess while police removed roughly 30 demonstrators who refused lawful orders to leave. This wasn’t civic engagement — it was a political mob disrupting government business and demanding the city turn its back on the rule of law.
The disruption came as the Department of Homeland Security and Border Patrol launched “Operation Catahoula Crunch,” a targeted sweep aimed at removing dangerous criminal aliens, with federal officials mobilizing hundreds of agents and setting an ambitious arrest goal. Local politicians and activists predictably painted the operation as a witch hunt, but the federal mandate is plainly about enforcing immigration law and protecting citizens.
Meanwhile, conservative leaders like Governor Jeff Landry have backed the federal presence, and the state has signaled willingness to deploy additional resources to restore order — exactly the kind of tough, commonsense response Americans expect when local officials abet sanctuary policies that tie the hands of law enforcement. This is a showdown over whether cities will prioritize political virtue signaling or the safety of their neighborhoods and businesses.
The protesters’ demands for “ICE-free” zones and theatrics inside a functioning council meeting are a blunt reminder that left-wing activists and some city leaders care more about optics than outcomes. While demonstrators chant slogans and virtue-signal for national attention, real families and small businesses in affected neighborhoods are living in fear and altering daily life — an irresponsible trade-off promoted by politicians who refuse to secure borders or back local cops.
Americans who value law and order should applaud federal agents doing the hard work that Democrats in city halls refuse to do; enforcing immigration laws is not cruelty, it is the backbone of sovereignty and public safety. If New Orleans’ leadership wants to debate policy, do it in committee rooms, not under the pressure of mobs that try to shut down democracy and undermine the rule of law.
