Civil liberties amid federal actions
Maryland advocacy groups and the state government are actively working to protect residents' civil rights and liberties in response to what they describe as federal overreach. Common Cause Maryland and Governor Moore have both framed state legislation as a bulwark against federal actions affecting immigrants, communities of color, and other vulnerable populations, raising questions about how far Maryland should go in asserting state-level civil liberties protections.
How aggressively should Maryland protect residents' civil liberties against federal government actions?
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Sources
Common Cause Maryland — https://www.commoncause.org/maryland/articles/mdga26
Protecting Immigrant Communities – The Trump administration is trying to instill fear in our communities by attacking our neighbors. Our communities are stronger when we all feel safe and have the opportunity to thrive.
Baltimore Fishbowl — https://baltimorefishbowl.com/stories/the-top-political-storylines-to-monitor-in-maryland-during-2026
To top it off, the three most visible, highest profile victims of this administration's ethnic cleansing, perpetrated under the rubric of immigration reform, happened to be Maryland residents – Miguel Abrego Garcia, Pastor Daniel Fuentes Espinal and Melissa Tran.
Governor Wes Moore — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-olLrrWYubQ
While the federal government is attacking our people here in Maryland, we defend them and we lift them up.
Positions on this issue · liberal → conservative
- Enact strong sanctuary laws, fully fund civil rights enforcement, and legally challenge all federal overreach in court.
- Pass targeted protections for vulnerable communities and actively resist federal policies that harm Maryland residents.
- Work cooperatively with federal authorities while passing state-level protections where federal law clearly conflicts.
- Respect federal authority and focus state civil liberties policy on issues clearly within Maryland's jurisdiction.
- Cooperate fully with federal government actions; state obstruction of federal law undermines rule of law.