John,
ICE is completely out of control, and we can’t continue to allow them to continue business as usual. As an immigrant, as the Ranking Member on the Immigration Subcommittee, and as someone who knows that the stories happening right now easily could’ve been my own, I cannot and will not accept this cruelty as normal.
Last year, Trump and Republicans massively expanded ICE’s budget. Under the Biden administration, ICE’s budget was close to $9 billion. But after the passage of Trump’s “big beautiful bill,” ICE will receive an additional $75 billion over the next four years, with much of that funding going to recruitment, new facilities, and expanded deportation operations. And that money came at the expense of important programs that actually help working families, like Medicaid and food assistance.
But despite this unprecedented budget increase, ICE has cut training standards, waived aged limits, reduced oversight requirements, and started putting violent, “wartime” language in their hiring ads.
We’re seeing the consequences in real time, with masked agents roaming the streets, conducting violent raids, detaining people only based on the color of their skin or the language they speak, and even detaining U.S. citizens for days at a time with no access to legal counsel or the ability to talk to their families.
Their actions have nothing to do with “public safety.” It’s a deliberate strategy that Trump and his administration are using to instill fear and cause chaos in our communities, and they cannot be allowed to get away with it.
That’s why I’m calling for new guardrails on ICE. We need to roll back excessive funding, enforce strict training and oversight standards, and ensure the violence that is occurring across the nation right now can never happen again.
Until we can pass legislation enacting these restrictions, I will oppose all funding for Trump’s DHS.
In solidarity,
Pramila Jayapal
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