Republican mayoral nominee Melissa Murray Bailey is determined to engage her Democratic opponent Jim Kenney on the issue of immigration.

In a press release issued Wednesday, Bailey further explained her stance on sanctuary cities and proposed a few questions: 

My strong stance against Philadelphia being a sanctuary city has nothing to do with a person’s country of origin, race or ethnicity. Jim Kenney would like you to believe it has to do with fear, but in reality my stance is just based on common sense and safety. Plain and simple there should not be a bureaucratic executive order in place that orders the Philadelphia police to release an individual here illegally, that could have been previously convicted of a violent crime, multiple drunken driving violations, or any other number of crimes that endangers the people of our city.  As a mother of a small child, on issues of safety, I feel Philadelphia must act with common sense and cooperate with the federal government to make sure our streets are safe for everyone. To Jim Kenney I ask, why do you feel the city of Philadelphia should put the safety of our children and fellow citizens in jeopardy by ignoring federal authorities and releasing potentially dangerous criminals back onto the street?

Meanwhile on Wednesday, Jim Kenney gathered with immigration activists at LOVE Park to condemn a house bill that would cut federal funding to cities who do not cooperate with ICE.

"We are all for the safety in the streets and in our communities," Kenney said. "We will hold people at the request of the federal government when they have a warrant for them to be held."