California Mayor Fights Governor Over Release Of Illegal Alien Criminals: Governor Brown and the legislature in California are ignoring federal law by not enforcing immigration laws even though the Constitution is very clear on this issue. However, there are plenty of people in California that are standing up for what”€™s right. So what will happen when it comes to the release of illegal alien criminals? Tune in now to find out.

Air Date: 06/18/2018

Guest: Mayor Crystal Ruiz

On-air Personalities: David Barton, Rick Green, and Tim Barton

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Transcription note:  As a courtesy for our listeners’ enjoyment, we are providing a transcription of this podcast. Transcription will be released shortly. However, as this is transcribed from a live talk show, words and sentence structure were not altered to fit grammatical, written norms in order to preserve the integrity of the actual dialogue between the speakers. Additionally, names may be misspelled or we might use an asterisk to indicate a missing word because of the difficulty in understanding the speaker at times. We apologize in advance.

Faith And The Culture

Rick:

You”€™ve found your way to the intersection of faith and the culture. This is WallBuilders Live! Where we”€™re talking about the day”€™s hottest topics on policy, faith, and the culture. Always from a biblical, historical, and constitutional perspective.

We’re here with David Barton, America’s premier historian and the founder of WallBuilders. Tim Barton”€™s, national speaker and pastor, and the president of WallBuilders. And my name is Rick Green, I’m a former Texas state legislator.

You can find out more about us at WallBuildersLive.com, that’s our radio site. And then WallBuilders.com, that’s our main website for all of the different things we do. Including pastors briefings in Washington D.C., leadership training for young people, all kinds of constitutional education, and history education. Go check it out at WallBuilders.com.

Alright, David, Tim, we’ve got one of those definite controversial issues today and it’s coming out of California. It has to do with–

David:

Oh, wait a minute, wait a minute. Something controversial out of California? Are you kidding?

Rick:

Everybody in California I thought agreed on everything. No?

David:

Only if it’s weird, and strange, and illogical, and has no common sense, yeah, they agree.

Rick:

Well, some people I think do think if you live in Texas, or you live in some more conservative states, you think everybody in California must be left wingers for them to elect the people that they elect and to have the policies that they have. Of course, the three of us know as we travel there a lot and we speak there a lot, there are a lot of great folks in California, a lot of great churches in California, a lot of people that don’t agree with what’s been going on. They’ve just been outnumbered at the polls lately.

David:

Yeah, that’s right.

Rick:

But even on this immigration issue which Governor Brown and the legislature there has basically said, “€œWe don’t care what federal law is, we don’t care what the law is. We’re not going to help in any way to enforce immigration laws even though the Constitution is very, very, clear.”€

Positive Action to Go Against the Laws

David:

They went further than that. Not only, “€œWe’re not going to help enforce, we’re going to help violate.”€

Rick:

Violate the laws, yes.

David:

They have to take affirmative action, they have to take positive action, to go against the laws. It’s not just a matter of not following them, it”€™s, “€œWe’re going to do exactly the opposite. We’re going to contradict and we’re going to stand in the way of federal–“€ And that’s an amazing thing to me because these guys have taken an oath to uphold the Constitution. By the way, Article 6 of the Constitution has the Supremacy Clause which says that all the federal laws made under the Constitution, and so they violated oath of office– there’s just so many areas where this is wrong top to bottom.

Rick:

And how crazy do you got to be, like you’re saying, to proactively violate the law to the point that you’re going to go in and release criminals before ICE can get there to deport them? Because you’re so anti limits on immigration at all that you’re actually going to release criminals into the streets and put them in the neighborhoods of your people in your state. That’s what’s happening here.

And so it’s causing people from California, and leaders in California– in fact, our guest today is a mayor in California that”€™s saying, “€œWait a minute, you guys are hurting us, you’re not helping us, you’re hurting us.”€ And they’re saying, “€œSanctuary cities, no, we’re not going to be a sanctuary state, we’re not going to participate in being a sanctuary state, and we’re certainly going to be a sanctuary city.”€ So, they’re trying to– you have cities now in California that are saying, “€œThis is crazy, we want the federal law followed and we don’t want these criminals released in our neighborhoods.”€

Roundtable on Sanctuary Cities

David:

The mayor is in one of those cities, Ruiz, recently was on national news because she was brought to the White House for a meeting with President Trump and other leaders there in a roundtable on this very issue. And it kind of went viral the things she had to say about sanctuary cities. And it really comes down to the point of what’s happening in California is, you, the state officials, are telling us we can’t keep our own people safe. Because you’re not talking aliens, you’re talking criminal aliens who are in jail for criminal behavior, and you’re releasing them just because you think immigration laws are bad. And that that’s just bad for the safety of the state.

So, Crystal Ruiz is the name of this mayor and she’s so articulate on this. And we thought this would be a really good perspective. Because unlike how we were facetiously beginning the program we know that there’s a whole lot of folks in California that don’t go with the nonsense that”€™s going on there. And she’s one of those and what a great voice she is on this issue.

Rick:

Mayor Crystal Ruiz, our special guest. Stay with us. You’re listening to WallBuilders Live.

Leadership Training Program

Rick:

Hey, friends! We’ve got a great program to share with you today. It”€™s the WallBuilders Leadership Training Program and it’s an opportunity for 18 to 25 year olds to come spend two weeks diving into the original documents we’re always talking about here on WallBuilders Live.

Tim, you’ve already been doing this a couple of summers and seen the results of young people coming to this program. We’re going to see more of them coming this year.

Tim:

Yeah, Rick, it”€™s something that”€™s been cool to see the transformation with young people coming in. The emphasis, for us, largely is a pursuit of truth. We have a culture that doesn’t know what truth is. We don’t know what biblical truth is, or constitutional truth, or the American heritage that we have. And so we really dive into original documents and say, “€œWell, what did they actually write? What did they actually do? Not just what did somebody say, what is actually true, and the truth is what’s transformational.

David:

Yeah, guys. This really is a remarkable opportunity. And for those who want to spend time with us and spend time in the original documents, this is a great program. So, if you’re from 18 to 25, or you know someone who’s 18 to 25, send them to sign up for one of our three sessions this summer at WallBuilders.com/leadershiptraining.

Rick:

Welcome back. Thanks for staying with us here on WallBuilders Live. Special guest today is Mayor Crystal Ruiz from San Jacinto, California. Mayor, thank you for your time to come on today.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Thank you for inviting me.

Rick:

I watched your comments at the White House in the roundtable with President Trump. So, well-spoken and, really, I think you spoke the heart of many, many, many, Americans that were feeling exactly what you were saying. And so first of all, I just gotta say hats off on a great job of communicating it. But secondly, I got to ask, how cool was that to be in that roundtable at the White House with the president?

Listening to the Regular Folks

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Oh my gosh, it was so surreal. It was absolutely amazing. Do you realize the President of the United States of America took time to listen to the folks, the regular folks, of America. And that to me is just, there’s no words for it.

Rick:

Yeah.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

After the cameras were gone and the press was out of the room the president showed that he still cares about what’s going on in our communities. He cares about what’s going on with the folks out there, and the real folks – not the propaganda that comes out. But he wants to know about what’s really going on with us and that’s what amazed me the most.

Rick:

Your journey is phenomenal. I know we want to talk about the issue itself, and the sanctuary cities, and what’s happening, but the context is just remarkable. You fought your way out of homelessness, you have fought your way back to be a leader in your community from what most people would have given up in despair. What drove you to– I mean, you were handicapped, you were homeless, living in a tent, and now you’re on national television meeting with the president of the United States.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

It’s faith in God because I had a high paying job before I was homeless. I got injured and I lost everything and I sat there in the tent there became a point where I’m in a wheelchair and the neighbor wanted to be my boyfriend. So, every morning he would clean himself up thinking he was going to get lucky.

SPEAKER: F10

And I looked out the tent flap and there he is relieving himself and at that point I went, “€œOkay–“€

Rick:

Wow.

Giving it All Over to God

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

“€œ– how do I handle this one?”€ I decided to turn it all over to God because you know what, I can’t do it. I can’t do it.

Rick:

Wow.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

And that’s what I did. And afterwards I got married and my husband and my four children were growing up in a community that needs help, and they needed help. They had just had all their council members indicted except for one, they went to jail. My neighbor happened to be the mayor and he said, “€œHey–“€– After 15 minutes with me he goes, “€œYou should run for city council.”€ And I did.

Rick:

No kidding.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

And I won with no signs. I had a 1 year old and a 2 year old in strollers. I had a 3 year old and a 4 year old on the end of a banner. My husband and myself we waved at traffic – 48,000 people in our community, and we won and blew away everybody that they ever thought would ever win.

Rick:

Now, what year was that? That was 12?

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

That was 2012.

Rick:

  1. And so did you– how did that work? You served one term as council and then ran for mayor?

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

We actually rotate. We rotate the mayor position.

Rick:

Ahhh, okay.

The First No Deficit Budget in Years

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

So, we actually vote– for the first time around, none of them really, everybody kind of took a turn because the precinct council was all cleaned out, all removed. So, I was like two years behind them and so we kind of rotated. And as we progressed, it’s about each one takes a turn. However, we do it for different reasons. This time we weren’t sure who we were going to go with. But in the end it came down to with two council members running for re-election, running for higher office, one was brand new and so I was kind of the only one left. And it worked out the way it should have worked out. It was hard for people because everybody wants that position of mayor. But my theory is is if you can’t do it as a council member, why the heck are you the mayor of a city?

Rick:

Right.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Because, frankly, you have no higher vote than anybody else.

Rick:

And you did this at a critical time because another– one of the main things you were pushing for was no more deficit spending, get this thing under control. And if I read right, you actually signed the first no deficit budget in years.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

You did. You did read that right.

Rick:

That’s a big deal. People talk about the federal deficit all the time, but I cannot believe what our local communities are doing right now. When I say “€œours”€ not just there in California, here in Texas we’re dealing with the same thing. And that local level we should be able to make a difference there and reading your story it”€™s like, yes, we can.  She did it. You came in and fixed the budget.

The Power of the People

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

If I can do it, anybody can do it, frankly. If we can do it in our city, anybody can do it. You have to take the hard hits. The reality is when we went in there and I said, “€œWe’re going to do this.”€ and the minute I ran we ended up balancing the budget by we closed some parks, we closed a fire station, we cleaned up the budget, no spending that was more than what we could afford.

We opened those parks up by the power of the people. The people came forward and came together as a community to make it happen. The fire station came together as a community. CALFIRE worked with us and everybody worked together to make it happen, so that we could get it back open without deficit spending. This is what should be happening across the nation.

Rick:

No doubt, no doubt. Let’s talk about the sanctuary city issues. So, the governor and the legislature ended up passing this, basically, sanctuary state bill. Were you aware of it happening as was happening? Or was it after it all happened you were like, “€œWait a minute, what just happened?”€

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

No, we actually were aware because Andrew * was running for assembly and he made us aware of the situation. He brought it forward back in January and said, “€œWe need to take a stand.”€ So, we did at that time. We did not make it a propaganda thing. My thing is is this is not about promoting somebody’s political career. What this is about is protecting our people. So, we had at that point made a stand that we were going to be a non sanctuary city. We always have been, we always were, we did nothing to vote into what they were doing. So, we were still a non sanctuary city. However, they changed things. With this new Prop 54 that they brought forward, as they brought things forward, then it became evident that we had to do something.

What Does Prop 54 Do?

Rick:

How does that work? What does the Prop 54, what does it specifically do and does it tie your hands in what you can do?

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

It does.

Rick:

Yeah.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

It ties our hands and worse, it ties our sheriff or police department”€™s hands. Our legislators, we have no business telling the police or sheriff’s department how to do their jobs. And that’s what Sacramento has done. They found out that we could get around what they were doing by opting out because we never opted in.

And they created this law that basically, it’s not really about sanctuary city, and that’s where people have to get their mind around what’s going on really. It’s all about getting those violent criminals out of jail and putting them in our communities. And I don’t care if you’re black, white, Hispanic, these people who are in jail for violent crimes need to be there.

So, they’re releasing them one day short of turning them over to ICE under the guise of the sanctuary city.

Rick:

And that means there’s somebody in, they’ve been arrested, they’re going to be turned over to ICE, and so the day before ICE comes to pick them up, they have to release them and put them back on your streets.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Oh yeah. And let me tell you something – they don’t release them to their streets because they can’t afford to live where the senators are, they can’t live where the governor is, and by gosh if they got near their homes the police would be all over it. They released them in our streets.

Rick:

Wow.

The Ones We Want to Keep

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

But our community who can’t defend themselves, these folks– and think about it – people from Mexico who came over, they come over with their families, we aren”€™t wanting them to go away. They’re hardworking, they want to do what your family wants to do, you want to make a better life for your children, right?

Rick:

Right.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

So, that’s what they’re here for. Those are the ones that we want to keep. We want them safe and protected. But they ran away from MS13, they ran away from the gang violence to get their families to a safe place. And now the governor of California is releasing them into the public, into their neighborhoods, so that they can go right back to being in the situation they were in Mexico. This is crazy.

Rick:

What are you asking the president to do? What is the solution? If Governor Brown and the California legislature is obviously not going to change their mind, what’s the solution?

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Oh, they”€™re going to change their mind. I tell you what.

Rick:

If the people rise up, you’re right, they will.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

It’s exactly what’s going to happen. And that’s exactly what we have to do. We have to stand up and say, “€œEnough is enough. Stop putting our families lives in jeopardy.”€ The president is going to support us in any way he can. After the cameras rolled he asked us, “€œWhat do you need?”€ I can’t say what we’re going to do because that’s not something that should be out there yet. But let me tell you something – whatever we ask for, the president’s going to help us do.

The People Have to Stop This

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

We have to stand up though first. The people have to stop this. They have to go, hey, recognize what it is. Do you want violent criminals living next to you? They’ve already did the 109, Prp 109, where they released prisoners into our communities. They’re doing another one. Now you’ve got SB54. How many times are you going to keep releasing violent criminals into our communities and what is it going to take–

Rick:

Yeah.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

–for us to uprise.

Rick:

That’s really the question. And what are you hearing from your friends, and family, and neighbors? And not just in your community, but across the state. Are they getting fed up yet?

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Oh, absolutely. I was really stunned by the amount of attention that we had outside. Now, mind you, in the state of California this didn’t even make local news. It wasn’t newsworthy they told us.

Rick:

Wow.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

But those people who have heard, I have so many messages, phone calls, e-mails, text messages, Facebook messages, from people saying, “€œThank you, thank you, thank you.”€ And I’ll tell you what, most of them are the hispanic people contacting me.

Rick:

Yeah.

The Beginning of the Battle

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

I’ve had only one or two threats, but most of them have been 99.90 percent positive. They want this to stop. They don’t know what to do anymore. And what we have to do is make enough noise and let people know. Because, in reality, if we shut our mouths the only thing that’s going to change it is one of their relatives gets attacked–

Rick:

Yep.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

–and killed–

Rick:

Yep.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

–then it hits home for them. But because we can’t wait for that, we need to rise up and we need to start letting our legislators know, “€œEnough is enough. We do not want this. We don’t want those violent criminals near us and we’re not going to put up with it.”€ And that’s the beginning of the battle.

Rick:

Well, mayor, you certainly have our support and we’re just thrilled at what you’re doing and your willingness to stand. And like I said, just how well you’ve articulated it. The video of you at that roundtable with President Trump, we’re going to put a link on our website today so folks can see it. Just keep up the great work. Our listeners all over the country are thankful for your stand.

Mayor Crystal Ruiz:

Thank you so much for having me and God bless you for what you’re doing. We’re behind you 100 percent. If you need anything, you”€™ve got my number.

Rick:

Wonderful. That’s Mayor Crystal Ruiz. Stay with us, folks. We”€™ll be right back with David and Tim Barton.

Share a veteran’s story

We Want To Hear Your Vet Story

Rick:

Hey friends! If you have been listening to WallBuilders Live for very long at all, you know how much we respect our veterans and how appreciative we are of the sacrifice they make to make our freedoms possible. One of the ways that we love to honor those veterans is to tell their stories here on WallBuilders Live.  Once in awhile, we get an opportunity to interview veterans that have served on those front lines that have made incredible sacrifices have amazing stories that we want to share with the American people.

One of the very special things we get to do is interview World War II veterans. You’ve heard those interviews here on WallBuilders Live, from folks that were in the Band of Brothers, to folks like Edgar Harrell that survived the Indianapolis to so many other great stories you heard on WallBuilders Live.

You have friends and family that also served.  If you have World War II veterans in your family that you would like to have their story shared here on WallBuilders Live, please e-mail us at [email protected]  Give us a brief summary of the story and we’ll set up an interview. Thanks so much for sharing here on WallBuilders Live!

Rick:

Welcome back to WallBuilders Live. Thanks for staying with us. Thanks to Mayor Crystal Ruiz for coming on and sharing her story and her experience at the White House. And certainly what she’s dealing with there in their community.

We’re back with David and Tim now. And guys, you just got a phenomenal story what she came from and now she’s got the backbone that we’re always saying we want in public servants. She’s clearly got it and * glad to see that Trump’s coming alongside her on it.

David:

I love the fact that– and I didn’t realize her story was handicapped, homeless, to being a mayor.

Rick:

Yeah.

David:

That’s a pretty amazing transformation. And she is so articulate, and she’s so optimistic, and bold, and confident. What a great leader and I love the way she came. Here she was back in 2012 with two kids in baby strollers campaigning, no signs at all. But that’s the kind of people you want in office is average common sense people who have their brains together, who have been through some experiences, who have been successful. And kudos to the city for choosing her.

A Rotation for Mayor

Tim:

Well, and let me ask this, guys, because this was kind of unique when she was saying there was even a rotation for mayor.

David:

Yeah.

Tim:

That’s kind of new to me. I know I voted for a mayor before, but I’ve never voted for a city council to rotate for Mayor. Is that normal or was this like a really unique deal?

David:

It depends on the city charters and states are different, and even regions are different. But you can have an actual mayor that has power or you can have a mayor that’s really a figurehead where the city manager actually makes all the decisions and the mayor is not much more than a council member. Here in Texas we have what we call county commissioners, but they’re really nothing more than one of the four other commissioners. They’re just kind of the guy that sits in the head chair, they don’t have any more power. So, it’s really different from city to city.

And so in her city their charter calls for this rotation among the city council. Which, every city is entitled to choose how they want to do it.

Tim:

Well, that makes it especially, I guess, more interesting and fun for her then because if you didn’t run for a position that arguably is a little more recognized, prestigious, of mayor, right, you had to have a little more I guess of the population that supports you because that”€™s generally a bigger seat. But she runs for city council, she rotates into this position of mayor, and then she sits in the White House with President Trump getting to discuss this.

And I love just hearing, Rick, as you were asking her about this experience and you could just hear in her voice still this kind of awe that, “€œIt was so cool. I got to be there.”€

Career Politicians and Normal People

Rick:

Right. She’s just one of the normal people of life. It wasn’t where– so often we talk about career politicians and Rick, I know this is somewhere and even sometimes we will joke about the disagreements where term limits are not term limits. And should we have them or not have them. Because ultimately we want to get rid of these career politicians who have been there so long, and they’re entrenched, and, they’ve corrupted the system, and they’re playing the game, and they’re not one of us anymore. And I thought the whole time in the midst of her interview, “€œShe’s just one of us”€, right?

Rick:

Yeah, yeah.

Tim:

The way just thinking, she’s looking at California, the problems in her city going, “€œNo. This doesn’t make any sense.”€ But when you’re not a politician that’s the way you should look at these issues. And she definitely looks at them like someone who’s not been ingrained in the system, but much more of the common sense and the problem solving kind of orientation where she’s coming from.

Rick:

Yeah, it’s encouraging and it’s another one of these programs where we’ve got this good news coming out of the states where we don’t typically expect that good news to come from. So, that should be encouraging to everyone across the country and the way she described running, and then fixing the budget, and getting them out of the deficit spending. So, I know our topic today is the whole immigration issue, but to me that was just super encouraging that, hey, folks out there that are listening, if you’re tired of what’s happening in your community, and your city council, or your local school board, get engaged. You can do what she’s done, you go win that race and help turn it around.

Guys, quick break. We’ll be right back. We’ll talk about how to apply this across the country. Stay with us, folks. You’re listening to WallBuilders Live.

 

 

Patriot Academy

Have you noticed the vacuum of leadership in America? It”€™s not just that we have a few bad leaders taking us away from our founding principles and leading us down a road of destruction. The real challenge is that we’re looking around for leaders of principle to step up and too often no one is there.

This is a generational Challenge.  And we must have a generational solution.  God is raising up a generation of young leaders with a passion for impacting the world around them. They’re crying out for the mentorship and leadership training they need. And we need to equip them for the purpose God has laid on their hearts.

Patriot Academy was created to meet that need. You, the listeners of Wallbuilders Live, have supported Patriot Academy over the years.  You have sent your children and grandchildren to the program and the results have been remarkable.

Patriot Academy graduates now serve in state capitals around America, in the halls of Congress, in business, in the film industry, in the pulpit, in every area of the culture. They’re leading effectively and impacting the world around them.

Patriot Academy is now expanding across the nation and now is your chance to experience this life changing week that trains champions to change the world. Visit PatriotAcademy.com for dates and locations. Our core program is still for young leaders 16 to 25 years old, but we also now have a citizen track for adults. So visit the website today to learn more. Help us fill the void of leadership in America. Join us in training champions to change the world at PatriotAcademy.com.

Rick:

Welcome back. Thanks for staying with us on WallBuilders Live. And David,Tim, we were talking about what Mayor Ruiz has done in her community. We often talk on this program about action. That people don’t just talk about it. What’s that Hancock quote, about John Hancock saying not just to pray, but to act. That’s what we’re encouraging people to do.

David:

While, I loved her confident optimism because she said, “€œOh, this is going to get turned around–“€

Rick:

Yeah.

This is a Leader

David:

“€œ–This is not going to stand, the people will stand up.”€ Man, that’s a leader. That’s the one that says, “€œHey, I know my own people better than this. I know what the state”€™s about and I love the way she framed it. This is not about sanctuary cities. This is about the safety of the people and releasing criminal aliens back onto the streets before they get deported for criminal behavior. And so she’s framed this right. And I think she’s right. I think a lot of people are gonna stand up.

We’re already seeing pushback in California. I talked about a church I was at recently where there were, I think, four or five bills that came through that were just onerous. And that church of over 10,000, they went out and the courtyard, the kind of foyer area, after church and thousands, and thousands, of them wrote letters to their legislators there at church. And suddenly over the next week three of the legislators reversed their positions because they got so many letters in one week. So, that’s just one church doing that. And so that’s the kind of stuff that we’re seeing across the country.

Rick, before the break we were talking about how this is the kind of leader we want across the country and if you don’t have this kind of leader go run for office yourself. I love the fact that she said she was just there talking to the mayor and he said, “€œWell, you ought to run for city council.”€ and she did and got elected with no campaign experience at all. But common sense people, with common sense solutions, that are just real genuine people, we really are hungry for those kind of leaders.

Rick:

That”€™s right.

David:

And that’s what we’re looking for – we just need more to step up to the plate.

California Mayor Fights Governor Over Release Of Illegal Alien Criminals

Rick:

No doubt. No doubt about it. In fact, just a little plug here for Patriot Academy – for young people out there that want to be leaders, come get trained at Patriot Academy – 16 to 25 year olds live the life of a legislator, learn how to be effective in the political realm.

If you’re a military veteran out there of any age come to Patriot Academy this summer and learn how to lead so that you can go back home and run for office. We’ll get you trained, you can live the life of a state senator for the week and actually interact with the young people as well. But you get a lot of great training as well. So, check that out at Patriot Academy dot com. Let’s go take over these communities all across the country and bring back that constitutional republican form of government. Thanks for listening today, folks. You’ve been listening to WallBuilders Live.