Democrats condemned the Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids as “inhumane,” saying they are dividing US communities and tearing families apart.
Immigration authorities began conducting raids in an operation expected to target about 2,000 undocumented immigrants ordered by courts to be removed from the country, a senior administration official told CNN Sunday.
The raids are slated to occur in Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York and San Francisco, a senior immigration official said. The raids will focus on recent arrivals to the country.
New Orleans is also on the list, but the city tweeted last week that ICE said it would suspend operations through the weekend in areas hit by Tropical Storm Barry.
Nancy Pelosi
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, tweeted Sunday that Trump should “stop the raids” and called for “humane immigration policy that reflects American values.”
“It should be a sign to us that today’s Catholic Gospel reading is the Good Samaritan, where Jesus teaches us to love our neighbors as ourselves and treat them with mercy,” Pelosi wrote in a separate tweet. “Trump’s ICE raids today tear families apart -the opposite of mercy. #FamiliesBelongTogether #KnowYourRights”
Pete Buttigieg
South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, a 2020 Democratic candidate, tweeted Sunday, “Today, as many gather to hear Sunday messages about our responsibility to welcome the stranger, this president is carrying out ICE raids designed to tear families apart, divide our communities, and further his extreme agenda.”
“#ICEraids will not make us safer—time for real reform,” he wrote.
Amy Klobuchar
Minnesota Democrat Sen. Amy Klobuchar said the raids are “not about giving people who are security risks deported, it’s about scaring everyone in the country,” on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.
The presidential candidate said, “I don’t think this makes sense,” adding that the US needs “comprehensive immigration reform.”
Bill de Blasio
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called the raids a “political strategy to keep people divided to the maximum extent possible,” on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Jake Tapper on Sunday.
“Let’s do comprehensive immigration reform, let’s have a path to citizenship for 11 or 12 million people who have been here,” the Democratic presidential hopeful said.
Cory Booker
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker posted on Twitter, “It’s being reported that ICE has started raiding homes across the country under the orders of the Trump administration.”
“It’s important to know that everyone—regardless of their immigration status—has guaranteed rights under our Constitution, so please know them,” Booker, a 2020 Democratic candidate, wrote, posting “Know Your Rights” information graphics from the American Civil Liberties Union.
Kamala Harris
“This makes us all less safe,” California Sen. Kamala Harris, a Democratic presidential hopeful, posted on Twitter Saturday. “Trump’s threat of ICE raids continues to stoke fear in this county. He is using immigrant communities for political gain.”
Joe Biden
Former Vice President Joe Biden called Trump’s ICE raids “inhumane,” and said the US should provide a pathway to citizenship. Biden posted the same tweet in Spanish.
“President Trump’s ICE raids are inhumane,” he tweeted Saturday. “His scare tactics solve nothing. We shouldn’t be terrorizing communities and splitting up families. We should provide a pathway to citizenship and find a lasting solution.”
