Durbin Calls Out Senate Republicans For Repeatedly Voting Down Legislation To Fund TSA, FEMA, Coast Guard Amid DHS Shutdown

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling out Senate Republicans for allowing TSA, FEMA, and the Coast Guard to languish in a shutdown after repeatedly voting down proposals to fund the agencies while negotiations continue on reforms for ICE and CBP.

Durbin began his remarks by emphasizing that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) must reform its immigration enforcement policies as federal law enforcement agents have spread fear in communities, brutally arrested both U.S. citizens and immigrants with no serious criminal record, ignored detainees’ right to due process, and killed U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good. Despite claims that Trump’s DHS would only go after the “worst of the worst,” less than 14 percent of the nearly 400,000 immigrants arrested by federal agents during the President’s first year back in office were individuals with charges or convictions of violent criminal offenses.

“Two weeks ago, the head of the Department of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, was fired by President Trump. Clearly there’s something wrong in that department, and it starts with ICE. This paramilitary force showed up in the City of Chicago and across the United States and has killed at least two innocent American citizens,” Durbin said.

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“You heard the President’s speech over and over again. We’re going to get the ‘worst of the worst.’ Remember he said that?… But the record of the ICE agency is much different,” Durbin continued. “Turns out that only one out of seven have any kind of criminal record. So six of the people that they are arresting and detaining and moving off to different detention camps have no criminal record at all.”

Durbin then laid out Senate Democrats’ proposal to reform ICE and CBP. Democrats are demanding the following common-sense measures: the end of roving patrols and indiscriminate arrests; upholding long standing, black-letter law that requires the use of a judicial warrant to enter someone’s home; a unified use of force policy to restore trust—one similar to what is already adhered to by local and state police departments around the country; and clear identification and the removal of masks to improve accountability.

“We have said repeatedly on our side, we want to work with the Administration to change the standards for ICE so that they are basically the same standards that apply to your state troopers and your hometown police—basic standards of law enforcement that professionals follow. ICE is a far cry from that today. But what we’re looking for are changes that makes them comply with the law and the Constitution,” Durbin said.

While Senate Democrats have made clear that reforms are needed at ICE and CBP, they have also put forth bills to fund the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), TSA, FEMA, and other important DHS functions, including one to pay TSA agents. But Senate Republicans have repeatedly blocked the legislation.

“Two weeks ago, the Democrats said we’ll fund everything in the Department of Homeland Security, all of it, including TSA, except for ICE which we’re negotiating with the White House. Let’s get it done. Nine times, Democrats have come to the floor and said we’ll fund the entire Department including TSA, including FEMA, including the Coast Guard. ICE, let’s resolve by negotiation. We’re in the middle of that right now,” Durbin said.

“Nine times, the Republicans objected to that proposal from the Democrats. So, to come to the floor now and blame the Democrats because people in TSA are not being paid doesn’t reflect the reality of what happened on the floor,” Durbin concluded his remarks.

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