Fact check: What specific sanctuary city policies did Obama implement during his presidency?

1. Summary of the results

Contrary to what the question implies, Obama did not implement sanctuary city policies at the federal level. Instead, he initially took a harder stance through the Secure Communities program, which required local law enforcement to share fingerprint data with ICE ^[1]. Later in his presidency, specifically in November 2014, Obama replaced this with the Priority Enforcement Program (PEP), which took a more targeted approach by focusing on convicted criminals and public safety threats ^[2].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

• The original question misses crucial context about the evolution of Obama's immigration policies:

Initially, Obama actively opposed sanctuary city principles by pressing local authorities to cooperate with ICE ^[1]

The shift to PEP in 2014 represented a significant policy change, limiting ICE's authority to place detainer requests on non-violent individuals ^[2]

• During this period, sanctuary cities themselves implemented various local-level policies, including:

Multiple types of identification for immigrants

U-visas for crime victims

Prohibitions on immigration-status-based arrests ^[3]

Ignores that sanctuary policies were primarily implemented at the local/city level, not federal ^[3]

• Overlooks the fact that Obama's administration actually created programs that initially worked against sanctuary city principles ^[1]
• Benefits certain political narratives that aim to portray Obama as either too lenient or too harsh on immigration, depending on the perspective
• Fails to acknowledge the complex evolution of his immigration policies from Secure Communities to PEP ^{[1] [2]}