While it is true that the Department of Homeland Security received billions of dollars from Republicans as part of their bill that cuts taxes for the wealthy, the money is being spread out over 2029. DHS did not get all the money at once. The money for ICE was also intended for specific tasks and therefore cannot be used for general expenses.
Administratively, this means that ICE still needs to be funded in the coming year.
The need for funding presents an opportunity for Democrats, as funding for DHS runs out in less than two weeks.
While Democrats have momentum on a number of issues leading up to the 2026 midterm elections, the killing of Renee Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis, MN has made calls to rein in ICE, and many Democrats have already pledged not to fund ICE until restrictions are placed on ICE’s activities.
Senator Reuben Gallego (D-AZ) said on CNN’s State Of The Union that ICE should be completely dismantled:
Well, look, I think ICE should be completely dismantled. It should be created in the image of what people want, right?
And what does that look like? From my experience running Arizona, in a very tough, tough state when it comes to immigration and immigration issues, people want immigration enforcement that goes after criminals, right, and focuses on criminals, and immigration enforcement that is actually focused on security, and not the goon squad that has come from Stephen Miller and Donald Trump, one that issues arrest warrants, one that doesn’t have masked people and acts like we’re a Third World police force.
What we see now is not what we want from ICE. And we can create and have a force that actually focuses on immigration and security, and not on the kind of intimidation that is happening now.
CNN’s Jake Tapper asked about the upcoming government funding deadline:
As you know, there is a government funding bill this month, and there is growing pressure from some Democrats in the House of Representatives and the Senate to freeze ICE funding as a point of contention in the government funding bill.
A year ago you voted to expand ICE funding. What are you going to do this week, this time? Because Democratic Senator Chris Murphy said – quote – “Democrats cannot vote for a Department of Homeland Security budget that does not curb this agency’s growing lawlessness.”
Gallego can’t answer for all the Democrats in the Senate, but there seems to be a real consensus that Democrats can’t vote for ICE on a dime unless they get changes.
Read more below and watch Gallego’s video.
