Amid Funding Fight, Sanders Says Unmask ICE, Repeal $75 Billion Giveaway, and More
"ICE is out of control, ignoring the law and our Constitution. Congress must vote NO on any additional funding for DHS," the senator argued as House progressives issued similar demands.
As the killing of another US citizen by immigration agents in Minnesota increases pressure on senators to reject the Department of Homeland Security funding bill advanced last week by nearly all Republicans and seven Democrats in the House of Representatives, Sen. Bernie Sanders published a clear list of demands on Monday.
"ICE is out of control, ignoring the law and our Constitution," Sanders (I-Vt.) said of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has conducted President Donald Trump's anti-migrant operations with Customs and Border Protection (CBP). "Congress must vote NO on any additional funding for DHS."
Sanders' list targets not only DHS and its agencies, including CBP and ICE, but also the US Department of Justice (DOJ), which Trump has been widely accused of weaponizing against his opponents:
- Get ICE, CBP, and the rest of Trump's domestic army out of Minnesota and Maine NOW;
- No more warrantless arrests, no more stopping people based on race or because of the languages they speak;
- End qualified immunity for ICE and CBP agents to ensure Americans' constitutional rights are protected;
- Unmask ICE and CBP agents and require clear identification;
- End detentions and deportations of US citizens;
- Investigate and prosecute every single DHS officer who broke the law and require DOJ and DHS to cooperate with states and cities investigating immigration agents who broke the law;
- Repeal the $75 billion for ICE and the nearly $65 billion for CBP in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill and restore funding to healthcare; and
- Impose strict standards on all detention centers and hold them accountable for their human rights abuses.
The senator's demands largely align with the reported demands of Senate Democrats, with whom he caucuses, as well as those of House progressives.
"Senate Democrats will not allow the current DHS funding bill to move forward," the chamber's minority leader, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), said in a Monday statement. "Senate Republicans have seen the same horrific footage that all Americans have watched of the blatant abuses of Americans by ICE in Minnesota."
Schumer argued that "the appalling murders of Renee Good and Alex Pretti on the streets of Minneapolis must lead Republicans to join Democrats in overhauling ICE and CBP to protect the public. People should be safe from abuse by their own government."
"Senate Republicans must work with Democrats to advance the other five funding bills while we work to rewrite the DHS bill," he continued, as the January 30 deadline to avert another federal government shutdown looms. "This is best course of action, and the American people are on our side."
Robert Kuttner, co-founder and co-editor of the American Prospect, reported that at a gathering late Sunday, the Senate Democratic Caucus agreed to block the $64.4 billion in DHS funding—including $10 billion for ICE and $18 billion for CBP—unless several conditions are met:
- An independent federal-state investigation, which includes Minnesota officials, of ICE murders and tactics;
- A ban on ICE use of face masks;
- A requirement of body cameras (there was $20 million in funding for body cameras in the current appropriations bill, but they are not mandatory);
- A ban on roving ICE patrols;
- A ban on the invented category of "administrative warrants" that bypass judges in violation of the Fourth Amendment; and
- An end to arrest quotas.
While Republicans have slim majorities in both chambers of Congress, most bills must win some Democratic support in order to get through the Senate, unlike in the House, where the DHS legislation passed in a 220-207 vote shortly before Pretti's killing.
Since the legal observer and nurse was killed in a CBP shooting on Saturday, at least one of the seven House Democrats who backed the bill has suggested he may vote differently in the future. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) said Monday that "I failed to view the DHS funding vote as a referendum on the illegal and immoral conduct of ICE in Minneapolis."
"I hear the anger from many of my constituents, and I take responsibility for that. I have long been critical of ICE's unlawful behavior, and I must do a better job demonstrating that," Suozzi added. "The senseless and tragic murder of Alex Pretti underscores what happens when untrained federal agents operate without accountability."
Meanwhile, expecting they will have another vote, progressive leaders in the House are also discussing their demands.
"Senate Democrats say they won't vote for ICE funding without reforms. Good. Now, we must negotiate hard," said Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), who chairs the nearly 100-member Congressional Progressive Caucus.
As Casar outlined on social media Sunday, his five "nonnegotiable" demands are:
- ICE and CBP leave Minneapolis and stops terrorizing American cities;
- We get a full, independent investigation into the killings;
- No more detaining and deporting US citizens;
- The masks come off; and
- The mass arrest quotas and warrantless arrests end.
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), one of several Democrats expected to consider a 2028 presidential run, on Sunday issued a slightly longer list that included the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and US Attorney General Pam Bondi:
- Vote no on DHS funding bill;
- Repeal the multiyear $75 billion funding for ICE;
- End qualified immunity for ICE agents;
- Investigate and prosecute every single ICE agent who broke the law;
- Impeach Noem and Bondi;
- End the Kavanaugh stops with racial profiling and end the militarization of ICE;
- Codify a use of force standard so courts can enforce the law against rogue ICE agents; and
- Tear down and replace ICE with an agency that has oversight.
"Congress is not powerless. Democrats must unify around an actual agenda," Khanna argued. "Trump is engaged in the SYSTEMATIC destruction of the rule of law."
"Only if Congress fights with every legal tool at our disposal including lawsuits in the courts, like we are doing with the Epstein files, can we stop this madness," said the congressman, who's led the fight for unsealing federal documents related to deceased sex offender Jeffrey Epstein alongside the only Republican who opposed the DHS bill last week, Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.).
"We owe that to nurse Pretti," Khanna added, "and the hundreds of thousands on the streets risking their lives to stand up for our freedoms."
