1. United States
2. N.Y.
3. Letter

As of January 31, Senate Democrats have failed to meet this moment. After days of threats and public bluster, Senate leadership agreed to pass funding while offering only future negotiations on limits to ICE and DHS. That is not leverage, not accountability, and not acceptable. Once again, Democrats gave ground without securing binding concessions. That failure makes House action essential. Leader Jeffries: House Democrats must not pass this. There must be no Democratic votes for any bill that continues funding ICE or DHS in their current form—no side agreements, no promises of reform later, no more retreats once the pressure is on. Events are accelerating, not stabilizing. Reporting on the rapid expansion of detention and “processing” facilities—modern-day concentration camps—is deeply alarming. Construction is moving fast. Capacity is being scaled for mass detention and deportation, not restraint. Trump’s rhetorical backing down is meaningless. The policies have not changed. Raids continue. Detentions continue. Deportations continue. ICE remains armed, aggressive, and unaccountable in our communities. Words without outcomes are empty. Democrats cannot keep drawing red lines only to erase them. That pattern is why ICE still operates with impunity—and why more people will die if Congress refuses to act decisively. I demand the following: • Zero Democratic votes for ICE funding. • Full caucus discipline in the House. • Concrete steps to dismantle ICE, not rebrand or “reform” it. • An immediate halt to detention facility construction and expansion. This is a test of leadership. If Democrats cannot hold the line when federal agencies are killing civilians and building camps at scale, then the party’s claims about democracy and the rule of law ring hollow. More Americans will die if Congress continues to choose capitulation over courage.