SACRAMENTO, Calif.—James Early, a California public worker and a member of Service Employees Local 1000, has a blunt message for federal lawmakers, all Republicans, who just approved $70 billion more for Donald Trump’s violent ICE agents: We’ll remember in November.
And it’s a good bet the rest of the AFL-CIO will, too, especially since the union federation just finished its convention in Minneapolis, an epicenter of Trump administration violence against migrants and citizens—killing two, Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Pretti, a VA hospital registered nurse, was a union member
The Service Employees picked up Early’s message and posted it on the international union’s website after the House sent the so-called “reconciliation” bill, with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) money and with no strings attached, to President Trump on June 9. The party-line vote was 214-212. He signed it the next day.
“What happened in the House is frustrating for working families like mine, but it’s also getting us activated for November,” Early said. “We’ve been saying we want healthcare, relief from these high prices, and respect. Their response has been to pour even more money into ICE to fund more hate.
“We’ll turn our frustration into action by organizing and sending a clear message at the ballot box. It’s time to put our country back on the right path by electing leaders that stand up for working people, not billionaires.”
The AFL-CIO, in a letter to lawmakers, said much the same thing, in more detail, in opposing the entire “reconciliation” bill.
Six months earlier, however, National Nurses United went further, and its stand may actually be more in tune with that of the public overall.
The Democrats strongly opposed more money for ICE. Their two congressional minority leaders, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, both D-N.Y., would agree to more money only with many strings and requirements attached. Others, such as “The Squad” of progressives, advocated outright abolition of the agency.
The nurses union, in line with public opinion, not only opposed more money for ICE, it wanted ICE abolished altogether, too. ICE already had $140 billion in its pocket from last year’s “Big Beautiful Bill.” It’s spent $40 billion of it. The House GOP, following Trump’s directive, complained about leaving the U.S. Southern border defenseless against an “invasion”—a racist dog whistle to Trump’s MAGA legions.
Meanwhile, the hour-long “debate” on the House floor on June 9 was bitter, with two targets of Democratic ire in the “reconciliation” bill. More money for ICE, including its expensive and dangerous private prisons for migrants, was one. The other was retaining Trump’s $1.776 billion “slush fund” for “victims” of the alleged politicization of the Justice Department.
Federal judges have stopped that scheme, at least for now, but Trump still muses about instituting it. Part of the money would go to the 1,600 arrested or convicted Jan. 6, 2021, MAGA invaders of the U.S. Capitol in Trump’s coup attempt.
“Republicans are proposing to spend nearly a quarter trillion dollars, all deficit spending, to expand detention camps, fund mass deportation, increase surveillance, and accelerate an immigration crackdown that has already caused enormous harm across our country,” said Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, D-Pa., who led the Democratic speakers.
“Let’s be honest about what this reconciliation bill represents. Republicans spent years pretending to be deeply concerned about deficits and debt, claiming to be the party of fiscal responsibility. They attacked virtually every Democratic proposal to help working Americans and families, saying those measures are fiscally irresponsible, but they used their control of Congress and the White House to add trillions—with a ‘t’—trillions of dollars, to the debt by giving tax cuts to their wealthy friends and corporate donors.
“Now, Republicans are adding hundreds of billions more in debt to put more masked and armed ICE agents on our streets and to build out a nationwide network of corporate detention camps. Apparently, deficits only matter when tax dollars are used to help everyday Americans instead of Trump’s billionaire buddies.
“They know Americans are alarmed when lawful residents, law-abiding community members, and even citizens, are roughed up or detained by ICE. They know people are questioning why the government is building expensive detention camps across the country, capable of imprisoning tens of thousands of people, while Americans can’t find housing and their kids don’t get enough to eat.”
Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass., attacked the slush fund. He said the president wants to turn the Capitol attackers “into MAGA millionaires.” These are people who “pled guilty or were convicted, McGovern said. “Donald Trump not only pardoned them, but now he wants to give them your taxpayer money.”
He called the move “just the tip of the iceberg” of corruption. Then he started his list: “A super pardon for Trump and his family, bribes to pardon well-connected fraudsters, crypto schemes, pump-and-dump stock purchases, weaponizing the Department of Justice to go after his political opponents and a sexual assault survivor, handing out massive contracts to his wealthy friends, appointing unqualified lackeys to important national security and Department of Justice jobs, and on and on and on.”
The AFL-CIO concentrated on the ICE money in opposing the entire reconciliation bill. Congress didn’t listen. The Senate had previously approved the reconciliation bill, S2, after an all-night debate.
“Despite the chaos and violence ICE caused in communities and workplaces around the country, this bill creates no guardrails whatsoever to constrain the lawless behavior of federal agents,” wrote Jody Calemine, the federation’s legislative and advocacy director.
“Worse still, by forward funding the agency for three years, it removes any meaningful leverage Congress has to demand accountability from ICE for the duration of this administration. This bill would constitute an unacceptable failure by the legislative branch to defend the Constitution and check abuse of power by the executive branch, and working families will face ever deeper harm as a result,” Calemine predicted.
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