1. United States
2. Mich.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to oppose Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer's proposed ICE reform framework and instead demand substantive changes that protect immigrant communities from ongoing abuses. With the January 30 government shutdown deadline approaching, Democrats must not surrender their negotiating leverage for cosmetic reforms that fail to address systemic problems. Schumer's proposed framework would separate Department of Homeland Security funding, including $10 billion in additional ICE funding, from other appropriations bills while implementing minimal reforms like body cameras, prohibiting masks, and ending roving patrols. These measures are inadequate. As Britt Jacovich of MoveOn Civic Action stated, "body cameras and new training are not nearly enough to reverse the damage and terror that CBP and ICE have inflicted on our communities." Many of these proposed reforms are already part of ICE standards but lack enforcement mechanisms. Recent events underscore the urgent need for real accountability. Federal agents have killed Alex Pretti, Renee Good, Silverio Villegas González, and Keith Porter Jr. during Trump's mass deportation campaign. Communities nationwide are organizing protests demanding an end to ICE's reign of terror. These deaths and the climate of fear they create require more than procedural adjustments. The Thursday Senate vote, where Democrats and some Republicans blocked the funding package 45-55, demonstrated that opposition exists to rubber-stamping ICE expansion. Senator Bernie Sanders' amendment to redirect ICE funding to Medicaid, though it failed 49-51, shows alternative approaches are possible. I ask you to reject any funding deal that increases ICE's budget without enforceable accountability measures. Kate Voigt of the ACLU correctly calls for "real, enforceable changes" to rein in ICE and Border Patrol operations. Support amendments that condition funding on verified compliance with human rights standards, establish independent oversight mechanisms, and redirect resources toward humane immigration processing rather than enforcement expansion.