The Shocking O.C. Illegal Immigration Story That Made National News This Week

Good morning, Happy Friday, and thanks for opening the latest edition of the OC Conservative Brief!

Today we’re diving into the shocking illegal immigration story in Orange County that made national headlines and prompted a furious reaction from the Trump Administration and a response from Gavin Newsom. We’re also checking in on the Republican side of the race to be the next governor of California (another candidate has joined the fray), and recapping the new California GOP Chair’s visit to Orange County.

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Now let’s dive in…

OC ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT FIRESTORM Orange County was ground zero this week for a major illegal immigration story broken by Fox News that made national headlines, prompted a furious reaction from the Trump Administration and Orange County officials, forced a response from Gavin Newsom, and exposed just how destructive California’s lax crime and sanctuary laws can be.

FIRST, THE BACK STORY: Illegal immigrant Oscar Eduardo Ortega-Anguiano was convicted of manslaughter in 2022 for driving drunk and high at 100 mph on the 405 Freeway and hitting a car driven by two Orange County teenagers, who were both killed after being burned alive.

Ortega-Anguiano had entered the country illegally twice before and had a prior criminal background:

• He had a rap sheet starting in 2005 that included burglary, vehicular theft, and spousal battery and kidnapping before a judge ordered him deported back to Mexico in 2016.
  

• He attempted to re-enter the U.S. near Otay Mesa in California in 2018, but was caught and paroled into the U.S. pending prosecution for illegal reentry after removal, which is a felony. A judge ordered an expedited deportation months later.
  

• Ortega-Anguiano again entered the U.S. a third time, this time at an unknown date and location.

ICE issued a detainer for Ortega-Anguiano when he was arrested after the drunk driving incident; however, he was prosecuted by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office for vehicular manslaughter and sentenced by a California judge to ten years in prison in 2022.

That wasn’t the end of it. This week, the family of the two teenagers learned from state officials that Ortega-Anguiano had qualified for early release, just three years into his ten year sentence, and would be released back into Orange County (reportedly in Garden Grove) in July.

This development, first reported by Fox News, set off a chain reaction of events over the next 48 hours from the Trump Administration and its allies determined to hold Ortega-Anguiano accountable to justice:

• ICE Director Tom Homan announced that the agency would be issuing another detainer for Ortega-Anguiano to deport him before he is released and, if state officials don’t comply due to sanctuary laws, ICE agents will be waiting outside. (Check out this previous issue of the Brief for a primer on how detainers and sanctuary laws work).
  

• Bill Essayli, the new Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney for the Department of Justice in California, announced he was filing federal immigration charges against Ortega-Anguiano for illegal re-entry, a felony which faces up to 20 years in prison. “If the State of California will not seek the full measure of justice against this individual, the [DOJ] will," he said.

It looks like there won’t be a standoff. Gavin Newsom’s office posted on X Thursday that California will cooperate with ICE and hand Ortega-Anguiano over before his July release date, noting his “heinous crimes” and previous deportations. But not before shirking responsibility by taking a shot at Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer, blaming the DA for giving him “a plea deal instead of pursuing 2nd-degree murder.”

This, in turn, prompted the below swift response from Spitzer, a Republican who has served as Orange County’s District Attorney since 2019:

Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes, who has vocally criticized the state’s sanctuary policies in the past, weighed in as well, writing that Ortega-Anguiano should be convicted at the federal level for illegal re-entry, serve his full sentence, then be deported for a “third and final time.”

This story arc is thankfully bending towards sanity, common-sense, and justice for the two killed teenagers and their families, but let’s not assume this swift reaction would be happening if President Trump wasn’t in office and strongly pursuing his anti-illegal immigration agenda.

After all, Ortega-Anguiano’s early release is a feature, not a flaw, of California’s crime policies. ICE was infamously neutered under the Biden Administration; we can’t assume that ICE under a Kamala Harris Administration would have issued a detainer in this case, nor assume California would have honored it. It’s doubtful that the Department of Justice under Harris would have aggressively sought federal immigration charges upon his release.

In fact, without the serious reaction from the Trump Administration, it’s doubtful this story would have made national headlines at all. Newsom clearly felt political pressure; why else would his office make a point to announce it would cooperate with ICE and then try to blame the OC DA?

The Trump Administration - and our local OC law enforcement officials - are fighting for our community. Sadly, as the OC GOP pointed out in a statement, Democrat Congressmen Dave Min, Derek Tran, and Mike Levin have all been silent.

BONUS VIDEO: Watch this new clip of Orange County Republican Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez questioning a Democrat legislator over new legislation that would makes it even easier to obtain early release for violent felons.

GOP GOVERNOR RACE HEATING UP! The 2026 race to become California’s next governor is heating up on the Republican side of the ballot with a lot of variables still unknown a year and a half away from the election.

Fox News personality, podcast host, and former UK political advisor Steve Hilton launched his campaign for governor this week at a kick-off rally at the Huntington Beach pier:

• “Here’s why we’re here,” Hilton said, admiring the fact that the city had flipped its city council from majority Democrat to all Republican in just a few years. “The spirit of Huntington Beach is going to be the spirit that saves our beautiful state of California and makes this state truly golden again.”

Hilton’s bid pits him against the other Republican in the race, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who launched his campaign earlier this year. Bianco first gained attention in conservative circles during the pandemic for refusing to enforce state orders around mask mandates and lockdowns. As sheriff, he has also been a strong opponent of the state’s sanctuary laws.

Polling shows the California governor’s race remains wide open. Katie Porter remains the front-runner among Democrats, although if Kamala Harris were to make a late entry into the race (she has said she will decide by the summer), she would jump to the top.

It’s also complicated by the fact that California has an open primary, meaning the top two vote-getters in the primary election regardless of party advance to the general election.

• A recent Emerson poll found Harris would earn 31% of the vote (although half of voters said they don’t want her to run), followed by Katie Porter at 8% and then Chad Bianco at 4%. 39% said they were undecided. The poll did not include Steve Hilton, who had not yet announced.
  

• A hypothetical poll taken late last year which did include Hilton found him earning just 6% of the vote, compared to 12% for Bianco and 13% for Porter.

The anxiety among Republicans is that multiple GOP candidates could split up their vote enough to mathematically ensure that two Democrats advance the general election. Depending how things shake out, consolidating around one Republican candidate may be critical to ensure the choice in November 2026 isn’t between Kamala Harris and Katie Porter.

But which Republican would that be? It’s still early. Hilton has media charm, potentially higher name-ID, and relationships with Trump world. Bianco has his own ties to Trump world as well - he spoke at a Trump rally last year - and as Sheriff has an actual record that Hilton can’t match, as well as a geographic base of support. An endorsement from Trump could tip the scales, but there’s no guarantee he’ll weigh in.

BOTTOM LINE: California is a tough state for Republicans to compete in state-wide. It’s geographically cumbersome, has some of the most expensive media markets for advertising in the country, and registered Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 2-to-1. A Republican hasn’t won a state-wide office since 2006.

That being said, until Harris makes a decision, it’s impossible to see what exactly this race might look like. A Harris run could nationalize the election, drawing more media attention (and money) to the race. For now, Republicans need to focus on building support on the ground, fundraising to afford to compete against the Democrat juggernaut, and prosecuting the case against fifteen years of Democrat rule in California.

RANKIN VISTS OC The California Republican Party’s newly-minted Chair Corrin Rankin swung through Orange County this week to address the OC GOP on the party’s efforts to win back the House seats it narrowly lost in 2024, underscoring just how big of a battleground Orange County will be again in 2026.

Rankin, who was elected in February, specifically honed in on California’s 45th and 47th Districts, where Republicans Michelle Steel and Scott Baugh narrowly lost to Democrats Derek Tran and David Min respectively, as two top targets for the state party.

• Tran defeated GOP incumbent Michelle Steel in CA-45 by just 600 votes. Min defeated Baugh in CA-47 by 10,000 votes.

“When you lose or win by a small margin, it really tells you that it’s a swing district,” Rankin said, according to the OC Register. “So there’s nothing that prevents us from feeling and believing that we can regain that seat again.”

• “We want it back,” Rankin said of the 45th District. “We’re going to do everything, we’re going to leave it all on the field, and we’re going to get our seat back.”

According to the California GOP, Rankin’s plan is to focus on “voter registration, community engagement, and old-school grassroots hustle.”

The Cook Political Report ranks the 45th District as a “toss up” in 2026 and the 47th District as “Leans Democrat.”

WAIT, THERE'S MORE...

🌎 New data released this week found that California has surpassed Japan to become the fourth largest economy in the world, behind only the U.S., China, and Germany.

🏘️ A federal appeals court declined to take a second look at Huntington Beach’s lawsuit challenging California’s state housing mandate.

🏅 The school board district in Redlands voted this week to prohibit biological boys from competing in girls’ high school sports.

🚨 A motorcyclist was shot and killed by a Newport Beach police officer last week during a traffic stop after the motorcyclist became uncooperative.