For the first time in ages, Congressional Democrats are in a position of strength. In the wake of the debacle in Minneapolis and elsewhere, Trump and the Republican Congress have finally blinked.
Under pressure from a government shutdown deadline [after swallowing blame for the last one], mass demonstrations nationwide, escalating violence committed by federal agents, and plummeting poll numbers, Trump accepted the Democratic proposal to pull Department of Homeland Security funding from an omnibus funding fill. This ultimatum – appropriations in exchange for negotiating much-needed immigration enforcement reforms – provides an excellent opportunity for Democrats to make some crucial demands.
The deal, passed in both Houses and promptly signed by Trump to avert another shutdown, opened a two-week window to negotiate ICE reforms. [ICE has become shorthand during this crisis for immigration enforcement in general, including not only ICE-specific actions, but also those of Customs and Border Patrol and DHS oversight of the operations.]
The two-week clock is ticking. Feb. 13 is the deadline, and the days go swiftly by.
Like Trump, at least some Congressional Republicans are reading the tea leaves. Republican Sen. James Lankford, in his constituents newsletter, conceded that there are changes that need to be made. While Lankford made it clear that he supports Trump’s deportation campaign on principle, he couched it diplomatically [and vaguely]: “There’s the right thing to do and the right way to do it.”
Addressing the importance of investigating ICE-related incidents with footage from body cams, Lankford wrote, “I fully support their widespread use by federal law enforcement offices, including ICE and CBP agents.” He specifically acknowledged the need to thoroughly investigate Alex Pretti’s death. [There was no mention of Nicole Good or other victims of violence at the hands of immigration authorities.]
Lankford also noted the lack of coordination between federal and state/local law enforcement agencies in Minnesota. Addressing both national and Oklahoma-specific concerns, Lankford went on:
“I spoke privately with senior White House and DHS leadership last week about body-worn cameras, training for new agents, and additional local support. All of these support the agents and the public. I have also spoken directly to leadership about the new ICE policy in Oklahoma of arresting parents as they take their kids to school. I am very supportive of arresting any criminal alien in our nation, but I also want to make sure we are wise in each situation, especially when children are involved.”
All of this is to say that Lankford, like Trump, seems to realize that the immigration enforcement crisis requires damage control. Democrats are giving them the chance to do so – by actually controlling the damage, not just giving it lip service.
Let us hope that Democrats will take advantage of their moment of political strength. They must use these negotiations forcefully – this could be their last chance before mid-term elections to create real change.
TAKE ACTION!
Contact your entire Congressional delegation and leadership of both parties in both chambers.
Why? To make it clear that when negotiating for DHS funding and reining in immigration agents, the following are deal breakers.
These are our demands:
- Return ICE funding to the level it was before passage of OBBB Act made it the largest law enforcement agency in the nation’s history, resulting in compromising recruitment standards and training;
- Do not divert the bloated ICE budget to another agency like Border Patrol for a similar purpose [bait-and-switch];
- Require crime scene preservation at any incident where violence occurs, mandating full collaboration with state and local investigative agencies, cooperating with a full, neutral, and transparent investigation;
- Make clear to all federal agents that professional standards, constitutional protections, and all state, local, and federal laws must be incorporated into any and all law enforcement activity, and insert accountability provisions that make clear there is no formal or informal notion of immunity while carrying out such activity – violations can and will lead to termination and criminal prosecution when justified;
- End all door-to-door neighborhood or workplace “sweeps;”
- Ban face coverings and require visible badges and photo identification, universal use of activated bodycams, and agency uniforms clearly identifying a specific agency for all officers in the field;
- No stops or encounters based on racial/ethnic/language profiling without just cause, subject to investigation of violating civil rights;
- Zero tolerance for verbal/physical aggression toward people being approached, questioned, or detained, including members of the general public, individuals being served warrants, and individuals being detained or transported – deescalation being the priority in every case;
- Focus on the stated priority of targeted identified immigrants known or suspected of having violated criminal law [being undocumented is a violation of civil, not criminal, law], deploying agency resources particularly to immigrants without legal status who are known to have committed violent crimes;
- End all deportation quotas, which undermine stipulation #9, above;
- Prohibit the accosting or arrest of individuals who present at immigration court procedings to meet court-mandated reporting requirements while their cases are pending, and who have been granted by the courts legal permission to remain in the country as long as they check in as directed;
- Do not act on the assumption that observers or demonstrators exercising their legal rights are hostile or are intending to impede law enforcement activities that conform to the standards described here, maintain calming, professional, non-threatening demeanors, including no unjustified use of physical assault [pushing, dragging, pulling out of vehicles, forced entry into homes without warrants] or less-than-lethal measures [chemical sprays, gasses, “bean-bag” projectiles, etc.] or deliberate use of potentially lethal force when no observable illegal behavior is present;
- If violation of local laws are apparent [such as violating traffic laws by intentionally blocking roads] or in the event of a motor vehicle collision that appears to be unintentional, immediately call local law enforcement, do not intervene, and do not leave the scene until local law enforcement agrees after following standard procedure to document and respond to the incident;
- Refuse to comply with any orders or missions that appear to violate these standards, and explain this to superiors, triggering a mandatory investigation;
- Establish a hotline [online and/or by phone] for officers and members of the public who believe they are witnessing violations of these standards, triggering immediate reply and when appropriate immediate dispatch of first responders.
Congress needs to curtail the Trump Administration’s worst instincts. If Republicans in Congress don’t join the Democrats in putting a leash on Stephen Miller’s extremist scheme of mass deportation, and the disregard for constitutional rights in its implementation, prepare for DHS to lose its funding.
We don’t need political theater. We need these urgent reforms.
Without them, in terms of demonstrations, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.
