1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

On January 23, 2026, a masked federal immigration enforcement agent in Portland threatened a legal observer with placement on a domestic terrorist database simply for recording his activities. When the woman informed him that recording was legal, the agent responded: "Because we have a nice little database, and now you're considered a domestic terrorist." This chilling incident, captured on video and widely circulated on social media, represents a direct assault on First Amendment protected activity. I am writing to urge you to publicly condemn this incident and take immediate legislative action to protect Americans exercising their constitutional rights to observe and record law enforcement activities. Recording police is a well-established First Amendment right, and threatening citizens with terrorist designations for doing so is an egregious abuse of power that should alarm every American regardless of political affiliation. This incident is particularly troubling given that it occurred in Maine, yet Rep. Jared Golden voted just one day later to provide ICE with an additional $10 billion in funding despite documented evidence of agents violating Americans' civil liberties. Nico Perrino, executive vice president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, stated that masked police telling people engaged in First Amendment protected activity that they are domestic terrorists who will be added to a secret government database should be condemned by Americans of all political persuasions. I urge you to introduce or support legislation that explicitly protects the right to record law enforcement, prohibits retaliation against legal observers, and establishes accountability mechanisms for agents who threaten citizens exercising constitutional rights. Aaron Reichlin-Melnick of the American Immigration Council noted that such threats radicalize opposition to enforcement tactics rather than deter lawful observation. Our constitutional rights cannot be sacrificed in the name of immigration enforcement. I ask that you take a clear stand against this abuse of power and work to ensure federal agents respect the civil liberties of all Americans.