A temporary deal on Department of Homeland Security funding shows how Americans’ anger is influencing Republicans in Congress and the Trump administration, according to U.S. Sen. Andy Kim (D-NJ).
A partial government shutdown ended this week when President Donald Trump signed a $1.2 trillion spending bill with just nine days of funding for Homeland Security, the parent agency of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Patrol. The stopgap measure followed a wave of violent immigration enforcement over the past several months, including the recent shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens.
“The fact that the DHS funding got separated from the rest of the government funding, and the fact that the Trump administration backed down to accept that shows just how angry Americans are, how worried they are,” Kim told NJ Spotlight News. “The Trump administration and the Republicans in Washington are feeling the pressure from millions of Americans that are just saying, ‘We don’t want this chaos in our streets.”’
Kim added: “I have people in New Jersey that are telling me that they are now carrying their passports around with them because they’re just worried about being stopped, worried about some potential interaction with CBP or ICE.”
Democrats are calling for major reforms to the way federal officers operate, including adding clear identification and body-worn cameras. They also want individuals empowered to file lawsuits against agents. Kim said the need for warrants should be a part of the changes.
“We need to stop these roving raids that the ICE is doing, able to access without a judicial warrant, continuing to see federal agents operating without clearly marked identification,” Kim said. “We need to see a real independent investigation into the killing of Alex Pretti, Renee Good, and the others that were killed in in detention and in custody of DHS.”
Kim said he regretted his confirmation vote for Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem, and added that she must be removed from office.
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