Leader Schumer Floor Remarks Urging Republicans To Join Democrats In Passing Commonsense Reforms To ICE

Washington, D.C. - Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) today spoke on the Senate floor on the Democrats' proposed reforms to ICE to end the status quo of fear and terror. Below are Senator Schumer's remarks, which can also be viewed here:

Right now, Americans from all walks of life-left, right, and center-agree that the status quo with ICE cannot continue and Congress needs to make a change. What's happening in Minneapolis and other cities around the country is not law and order. It's thuggery. Thuggery.

Here's what former Border Patrol head Greg Bovino said recently in a video that's circulated online: "Arrest as many people who touch you as you want. Those are general orders, all the way to the very top!" That is the rhetoric of police states. That is precisely the abuse that Congress needs to stop. That is why we were so intent on splitting off the Homeland Security bill from the rest of the funding bills, so we could focus on it, rein it in, rein in ICE, and end the violence. Republicans need to take a good look at what's happening around the country and realize, too, that it's time to rein in ICE's abuses. We should be going after the "worst of the worst," as the administration says, instead of unleashing fear and chaos on everybody else.

What Democrats want is exceedingly reasonable. We need to end roving patrols. That means arrest warrants and ending racial profiling.

Second: we need real accountability, having ICE abide by the same rules as local police does, including independent investigations of ICE.

Third: masks need to come off, cameras need to stay on, and officers need visible identification. No secret police.

These changes are as common-sense as it gets. There is nothing "insane"-as some Republicans think-about asking federal agents to respect the fourth amendment. It does not "criminalize" law enforcement to ask them to identify themselves and to follow the same basic code as other law enforcement. The idea that Speaker Johnson has that ICE people should be able to wear masks; police officers don't wear masks all across the country. And if anyone needs to be identified it's these abusive thugs who are in the Border Patrol, who are in ICE. If Republicans can't come to the table on these very sensible changes, then the violence we see happening around the country is going to continue.

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