Several high-profile Democrats in Congress, including Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Elizabeth Warren, have previously supported abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency responsible for enforcing immigration law in the US. Despite their past calls for abolishing ICE, there has been little pushback from Democrats about ICE enforcement under President Biden, especially as the border crisis continues to impact US citizens, cities, and communities. Senator Gillibrand expressed her belief that ICE has become a deportation force and that the agency should be reimagined under a new mission. Senator Warren also criticized ICE in 2018, suggesting it should be replaced with an agency that reflects American values.
Senator Bernie Sanders released a plan in 2019 that included breaking up ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP), with deportation and enforcement returning to the Department of Justice. Several House Democrats supported the idea of “terminating” ICE under Trump and introduced legislation to establish a commission for a humane immigration enforcement system. Democrats like Mark Pocan, Pramila Jayapal, Adriano Espaillat, and others co-sponsored bills to abolish ICE, citing concerns about the agency’s practices such as conducting raids and separating families. Representatives like Adam Smith, Nydia Velázquez, Earl Blumenauer, Yvette Clarke, and Jim McGovern also voiced support for abolishing ICE, arguing that the agency had gone too far from its original mission.
Even Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called for abolishing ICE and suggested eliminating the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE. Despite not receiving responses from any of the Democrats mentioned in the article about their current stance on abolishing ICE, the issue has continued to be a topic of debate within the party. ICE was established in 2003 as part of the Department of Homeland Security following the 9/11 terror attacks, absorbing the responsibilities of the former Immigration and Naturalization Service and the U.S. Customs Service. The agency is currently led by Acting Director Patrick J. Lechleitner and has seen a record number of encounters in recent years, with over 1.3 million total encounters in the first six months of fiscal year 2024.
Overall, the push to abolish ICE by several Democrats in Congress, including Senators Gillibrand, Warren, and Sanders, as well as Representatives Pocan, Jayapal, Espaillat, and others represents a significant stance within the party. Despite the past calls for abolishing ICE, there has been limited resistance to ICE enforcement under the Biden administration, particularly as the border crisis continues to escalate. The debate over the mission and practices of ICE remains an ongoing issue, with calls for reform or replacement with an agency that aligns more closely with American values and immigration policy. It remains to be seen how the issue of abolishing ICE will continue to shape the political landscape moving forward.
