1. United States
2. Pa.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to deny funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the Fiscal Year 2026 budget resolution. ICE has evolved from a lawful immigration enforcement agency into a violent, politicized force that violates constitutional rights and destabilizes communities. Recent large-scale ICE deployments in Minnesota have resulted in fatal shootings, repeated use-of-force incidents, and sustained community unrest. An ICE agent killed a civilian during an enforcement action, yet federal authorities have refused to open an investigation into this incident. Instead of accountability, the federal response has included threats to invoke the Insurrection Act, preparations for deploying active-duty military forces domestically, and criminal investigations targeting elected state and local officials who publicly opposed ICE operations. Senior administration officials have provided contradictory or false public statements about ICE practices, denied the use of chemical agents despite video evidence, and dismissed documented misconduct as merely an "optics" problem. This pattern reveals an agency operating without transparency, oversight, or respect for constitutional limits. Opposition to ICE's current structure is no longer limited to one political ideology. Even elected officials who previously supported tougher immigration enforcement now state that ICE has become a politicized, militarized force that cannot be reformed through additional funding. Congress holds the constitutional power of the purse precisely to prevent executive abuse and enforce accountability when federal agencies violate public trust. Continuing to fund ICE without dismantling and replacing its current structure signals approval of violence, retaliation, and erosion of civil liberties. I urge you to deny funding for ICE in any new budget resolution unless Congress first acts to dissolve the agency as currently constituted and replace it with a humane, civilian immigration enforcement system grounded in the rule of law, due process, and constitutional protections. Your constituents deserve an immigration system that respects both security and fundamental rights.