Washington, DC — As Congress heads back in session this week and the White House and congressional Republicans push to further fund ICE and CBP without reforms or accountability via the reconciliation process, we have several fresh reminders why the agencies shouldn’t receive another penny for mass deportation:
- The record-high “windfall” of more than $150 billion for immigration enforcement in last year’s BBB legislation that “insulates” ICE and ensures the DHS shutdown doesn’t slow the Trump/Miller agenda (see NPR story detailed below)
- The continued real stories and examples of the cruelty, harms, and misplaced priorities innate to the anti-immigrant agenda and being carried out by ICE and CBP each day (see examples of children in North Carolina being deported and another Venezuelan doctor in South Texas being detained)
According to Vanessa Cárdenas, Executive Director of America’s Voice:
“The mass deportation machinery of ICE and CBP sits on a $150 billion pile of unregulated cash that is out of control and unaccountable to American taxpayers. These renegade agencies do not deserve a blank check nor another dime. They do need an immediate check on armed and masked agents, deportation of American citizens, disregard for privacy and the rule of law, and chaotic and violent invasion of communities from coast-to-coast.
The daily volume of cruelties blow up the lie that softer messaging and new DHS leadership signal a departure from the mass deportation crusade. Children are being deported, rural doctors are being detained, and American taxpayers are being asked to foot the bill for mass deportation at a time when they want relief from soaring gas prices and access to affordable healthcare, housing, and education. Instead of listening to the majority of Americans, Congressional Republicans are doubling down on destruction.”
NPR writes, “How a $75 billion windfall from Congress has insulated ICE,” noting:
“Two months ago, Democrats in Congress said they would not give immigration enforcement agencies another cent without reforms to limit the tactics of their officers. But 59 days into a record-long Department of Homeland Security shutdown, that strategy has resulted in none of the policy changes they have demanded, while President Trump’s immigration crackdown is still operating at full speed.
That is thanks to congressional Republicans, who gave Immigration and Customs Enforcement a $75 billion windfall last year with few strings attached — money that has helped insulate ICE from congressional pressure and oversight.”
NC Newsline reports, “Two Durham elementary students detained by ICE, deported to Honduras within 48 hours,” noting:
“Two Durham elementary school students and their parents were detained by federal immigration authorities during a scheduled appointment in Charlotte earlier this week, and deported to Honduras within 48 hours, according to family members and advocates. The children, Genesis, 11, and Denis, 6, were taken into custody along with their parents on Monday after arriving for what relatives described as a routine administrative check-in tied to their asylum case.
‘This family was lured into the check-in office under a false pretense of safety, and they were ripped away from their lives, from their school and deported in about 48 hours,’ said Andreina Malki, defense manager with Siembra NC, at a press conference in Durham.”
Miriam Jordan writes in The New York Times, “Second Venezuelan Doctor Detained in South Texas by Immigration Agents,” detailing:
“For the second time in less than a week, a Venezuelan physician has been detained in South Texas as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
The latest doctor, Rubeliz Bolivar, who worked in a hospital emergency room in the Rio Grande Valley, a federally designated underserved medical area, was detained on Saturday after checking into a flight to California. She had planned to join her husband for their asylum interview, scheduled for next week.
Dr. Bolivar, who, according to her husband, has a valid work permit, was traveling with their 5-year-old daughter, who is a U.S. citizen. Dr. Bolivar has lived in the United States for a decade.”
