Huntington Beach has a highly-placed White House champion in Stephen Miller

Huntington Beach has a new high-profile ally in its ongoing battles against the state — Stephen Miller, a top White House aide to President Donald Trump.

Miller's non-profit law firm is now representing Surf City in at least two legal battles, including fighting for control over the city’s beloved libraries as well as the state’s sanctuary policies.

About the cases

Recent PACER court records show America First Legal Foundation attorneys are representing the city against the American Civil Liberties Union and First Amendment Coalition. The two groups, joined by some teens who live in Huntington Beach, have sued the city over its controversial book review board and a policy that prohibits minors from checking out books with sexual content.

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Librarians at the Huntington Beach Central Library review books in the children's section on Feb. 7, 2024.

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Jill Replogle

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LAist

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Attorneys from the America First Legal Foundation also are listed as representing the city of Huntington Beach, its police department and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco in a lawsuit filed in opposition to the state’s sanctuary policies that are aimed at protecting immigrant communities.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has called the the Huntington Beach lawsuit “a misguided attempt to divert its limited resources to federal immigration enforcement.”

Jonathan Markovitz, an attorney with ACLU, told LAist in a written statement the group filed the lawsuit "to protect the public’s right to access a diverse range of library materials."

"It is no surprise that a law firm closely aligned with an administration that never misses an opportunity to attempt to repress dissenting voices," Markovitz said in the statement. "Whether they come from protesters objecting to immigration policies that are tearing apart our communities, law firms that had the temerity to defend critics of the administration, or universities that decline demands to punish student speech — would seek to assist the city as it violates California’s Freedom to Read Act and the public’s constitutional rights."

LAist has reached out to America First Legal Foundation and the city's public information officer for comment. This story will be updated if and when we get hear back.

The backstory

In recent years, conservatives on the Huntington Beach City Council have emerged as leaders in the so-called culture wars by waging battle against California’s liberal policies. The city's former city attorney, Michael Gates, also joined the current administration as deputy assistant attorney general in the Department of Justice’s civil rights division.

And now, the city appears to have a high-profile supporter in Miller, who grew up in Santa Monica and is seen as the architect behind Trump’s immigration and deportation policies.

About the legal foundation

Miller, who is not a lawyer, started the firm in 2021 calling it the “long awaited answer to the ACLU.”

Since then, America First Legal Foundation has filed complaints against companies such as Hasbro and Mattel alleging racial discrimination and, in the firm's works, for “promoting a radical LGBT+ agenda.” In a news release, the firm called these companies “influential corporations whose actions are setting our nation back decades, all in the pursuit of woke and morally bankrupt ideologies.”

America First Legal Foundation says one of its priorities is dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion programs. The firm recently sued the Los Angeles Dodgers’ alleging DEI programs like employee resources groups are “engaging in unlawful discrimination.” Another key area their work focuses on is immigration, specifically “to restore control over our borders, dismantle sanctuary jurisdictions, challenge the left’s open-border policies, and reinstate immigration enforcement across the country.”