Democrats Issue Demands to Avoid Government Shutdown Over ICE Reform
Washington, D.C. – With a looming partial government shutdown on the horizon, Senate Democrats revealed a set of demands Wednesday aimed at overhauling U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to Time. The demands were tied to a must-pass spending bill as Congress hurried to avert a shutdown that could begin early Saturday.
Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic leader, stated that his party had united around three legislative objectives necessary to rein in ICE, which they accuse of operating with little accountability under President Donald Trump, Time reported. These demands include tightening ICE's warrant requirements, introducing a uniformed code of conduct for its agents, and requiring all ICE agents to be unmasked and equipped with operating body cameras. "We want to end roving patrols," Schumer said, as reported by Time, laying out Democrats' first demand.
The potential government shutdown comes amid heightened tensions surrounding immigration enforcement. Activists are calling for a nationwide general strike on Friday, January 30, to protest President Trump's immigration crackdown following the fatal shootings of two people by federal agents in Minneapolis, Time reported. The "National Shutdown" campaign website urged people across the country to abstain from school, work, and shopping to protest ICE's "reign of terror," according to Time.
These calls for action follow a similar general strike in Minneapolis last Friday, where thousands took to the streets and hundreds of businesses closed after an ICE officer shot 37-year-old Renee Good earlier in the month, Time reported.
The Trump administration's policies have faced scrutiny on multiple fronts. NPR reported that the administration secretly overhauled nuclear safety rules. Furthermore, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects that President Trump's National Guard deployments could cost over $1.1 billion this year if domestic deployments remain in place, NPR reported. During his second term, Trump sent troops to six Democratic-led cities in an effort to suppress protests, tackle crime, or protect federal buildings and personnel, NPR stated. Half of those mobilizations ended this month.
Additionally, NPR reported on the Trump administration's efforts to reverse climate change policies, noting that President Trump calls global warming "a hoax."
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