As the Trump administration intensifies immigration enforcement, federal and state officials are also escalating a public fight over what counts as lawful rights education and what crosses into interference with enforcement. That dispute sharpened on July 15, when the Department of Homeland Security singled out Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and California Gov. Gavin Newsom while warning that attacks on ICE officers have surged.
DHS ties named Democrats to rise in violence against ICE
The Department of Homeland Security released a statement on July 15 saying assaults on ICE officers are up 1,300% and naming several Democratic officials it said have fueled hostility toward federal immigration enforcement, including Ocasio-Cortez and Newsom. In the statement, distributed by DHS and republished through a public release service, the agency said Ocasio-Cortez hosted a webinar that provided tips for immigrants to avoid arrest and said Newsom has promoted statewide “Know Your Rights” materials.
DHS also cited specific recent incidents involving vehicles during enforcement actions, including an April 2, 2026, case in Baltimore in which an immigrant from Honduras allegedly tried to evade arrest and injured two ICE officers, according to the department’s statement. The agency framed those cases as part of a broader increase in threats and assaults directed at federal officers during field operations. DHS did not, in the release reviewed for this article, publish the underlying dataset or methodology behind the 1,300% figure.
The agency’s warning arrived amid a broader political push by the administration to tie criticism of ICE to violence against officers. Fox News reported the same day that DHS officials and Republican lawmakers, including Sen. Markwayne Mullin, criticized Ocasio-Cortez and Newsom over webinars and online resources that they said help people evade immigration arrests.
California is at the center of the dispute because Newsom’s office has publicly promoted “Know your rights” guidance for residents during federal immigration activity. In a January 24, 2026, statement, Newsom urged Californians to “stay safe and know their rights” and highlighted a state reporting portal for possible unlawful conduct by federal agents, while also stating that threatening, assaulting or obstructing federal officers is a crime.
That California guidance makes clear the state is drawing a line between constitutional-rights education and direct interference with enforcement. The governor’s office said residents have First Amendment protections and can document public activity, but it also said violence, vandalism and blocking law enforcement operations are unlawful. That distinction is central to the current clash between Sacramento and Washington.
What is not yet known is whether DHS plans any formal legal action tied to the webinars or online materials it cited. The federal agency has publicly criticized the messaging, but it has not released a court filing, referral document or enforcement action showing that Newsom’s materials alone violated federal law. California also has not released any statewide accounting showing whether its guidance changed behavior during specific ICE operations.
Ocasio-Cortez’s office has previously described its webinar as guidance on constitutional rights, not an instruction manual for evading arrest. In a February 28, 2025, press release, her office said it hosted a “Know Your Rights” webinar on Feb. 12, 2025, to give constituents practical information on how to interact with ICE, after former border official Tom Homan called for an investigation.
Newsom’s office has taken a similar position in California. The governor’s January 2026 statement said no one in the country is without constitutional rights and told residents to remain nonviolent while staying informed during federal actions. A spokesperson for Newsom, quoted by Fox News on July 15, said such guidance would be unnecessary if ICE officers were properly trained on the public’s constitutional protections.
For residents, the immediate takeaway is that the public messaging war around immigration enforcement is likely to continue even as raids and court challenges move forward. Californians can expect state officials to keep circulating rights information and the federal government to keep challenging that approach, while neither side has publicly shown signs of backing down as of July 15.