Village Independent Democrats

U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY PETE HEGSETH AND CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF GENERAL DAN CAINE ARE MONITORING IRAN OPERATION FROM MAR-A-LAGO IN FLORIDA, PERSON FAMILIAR WITH MATTER TELLS REUTERS

There is no question that ICE has overstepped its bounds. We have seen masked agents aggressively and at times violently confront people, including American citizens and individuals who are lawfully present in this country, before even asking basic questions or executing a lawful warrant. While I continue to strongly support law enforcement, a secure border and the deportation of violent criminals, ICE’s current confrontational enforcement posture in Minnesota, previously in Chicago, and elsewhere across the country is escalatory and inappropriate. ICE must enforce the law with transparency, accountability, and due process — not with indiscriminate, chaotic sweeps. That said, I am voting for the Department of Homeland Security appropriations bill, not to expand ICE enforcement or add more agents, but to fund the core operations Americans rely on every day, FEMA disaster response, TSA security, Customs and Border Protection, the Coast Guard, passport processing, and other essential services. The FY2026 Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act is the product of bipartisan negotiations and responsible governing. It fully funds DHS without expanding funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement. At the same time, it ensures continuity for the critical agencies that keep our country safe and functioning. I strongly oppose allowing another shutdown to disrupt the lives of working families. We saw the damage of a shutdown last year: millions of Americans lost pay and access to essential services. Congress has a responsibility to govern, not to lurch from one manufactured crisis to the next. Let me be clear: any ICE funding currently in place was authorized under the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill,” a hyper-partisan package signed into law in July that I opposed. If this vote today were to fail, anything in the "One Big Beautiful Bill" would have been implemented, without reforms, bipartisan input, or additional oversight. This vote today does not increase ICE funding. What it does do is strengthen accountability by supporting additional training and the use of body cameras, both critical steps to improve transparency and rebuild public trust. Fear-based policies that separate families and destabilize communities do not make us safer, they erode trust and undermine effective law enforcement. The solution is clear: Congress must come together to pass bipartisan immigration reform that secures the border, modernizes our asylum system, upholds the rule of law, and treats people with dignity.