STATEMENT: Congressional Republicans Gift Lawless Trump Administration $70B Mass Deportation Slush Fund After Voting Down Measures To Help Americans in Need

Washington, D.C. — Today, House Republicans voted for tens of billions of dollars in unaccountable taxpayer funding for U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to carry out the Trump administration’s unpopular mass deportation agenda. Last week, before sending this bill to the House of Representatives, Senate Republicans had rejected multiple amendments to the bill to help Americans in need. In response, Debu Gandhi, senior director for Immigration Policy at the Center for American Progress, released the following statement:

As American households are forced to pay an extra $750 in costs because of the president’s dangerous and foolhardy war of choice in Iran, congressional Republicans are shelling out $70 billion to President Donald Trump’s corrupt and lawless ICE and CBP while doing nothing to help Americans crushed by the high cost of living. This new slush fund will undoubtedly worsen, not rein in, the abuses of President Trump’s destructive and unaccountable deportation force. Congress should be focused on giving Americans more breathing room and fixing our broken, outdated immigration system to make our country safer and stronger.

Related resources: 

“Congressional Republicans Recklessly Bill Taxpayers for the Trump Administration’s ICE and CBP Slush Fund and Wasteful Ballroom” by Rosa Barrientos-Ferrer, Ben Greenho, Debu Gandhi, and Silva Mathema

“The Trump Administration’s Assault on Immigrants Degrades the Rule of Law” by Tom Jawetz

“Trump and Congressional Republicans’ Plan To Pump More Money Into ICE and Border Patrol Is a Missed Opportunity To Help Americans” by Bobby Kogan

For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Gaby Blanco at [email protected].