I pay attention to Virginia politics for a reason that has nothing to do with party labels: my best friend lives there. When decisions are made in Richmond, they don’t feel theoretical to me. They feel personal. They affect a place where someone I care about raises a family, drives the same roads every day, and assumes — reasonably — that public safety means using every lawful tool available.
That’s why Governor Abigail Spanberger’s first-day executive order ending state cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deserves more scrutiny than it’s getting.
This wasn’t a minor administrative tweak. It was a deliberate choice to pull Virginia State Police out of cooperation with federal immigration enforcement — not because the law required it, not because a court ordered it, but because the governor decided that distance was preferable to involvement.
Supporters frame the move as compassionate. That’s a convenient label. In reality, it’s a policy of withdrawal.
Under former Governor Glenn Youngkin, Virginia took the position that public safety didn’t stop at jurisdictional boundaries. If someone was already in contact with law enforcement and federal authorities wanted cooperation, the Commonwealth would not stand in the way. That wasn’t extremism — it was coordination.
Spanberger rejected that outright.
Her order doesn’t block ICE from operating in Virginia. But it sends a clear message: state law enforcement will no longer assist, no longer coordinate, no longer share responsibility. Immigration enforcement is declared someone else’s problem.
And that’s where this becomes troubling.
When a governor tells state police to step back from cooperation, she isn’t just protecting community trust — she’s narrowing the definition of public safety. She’s deciding, unilaterally, that the state has no role when federal law enforcement intersects with criminal conduct already in the system.
This wasn’t debated. It wasn’t legislated. Virginians never voted on it. It happened quietly, by executive order, before the furniture in the governor’s office had time to settle.
Local and state officers will increasingly avoid contact that could implicate immigration status, even when serious crimes are involved. Federal agents will operate with less local intelligence and less logistical support. Criminals who understand this separation will exploit it — not because Virginia is a “sanctuary,” but because fragmented enforcement creates seams. Criminals always find the seams.
Youngkin’s approach said: We’ll help.
Spanberger’s says: We won’t.
Neither position is accidental. Neither is neutral. And neither should be misunderstood.
Because when the governor tells her state police to stand down, she isn’t just redefining enforcement — she’s redefining responsibility.
This decision will quietly turn Virginia into a case study in how selective enforcement leads to selective accountability — with public safety paying the price.
The Valley Viewpoint 