Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., continued attacking Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Thursday, claiming that it was “un-American” for the agency to detain immigrants suspected of violating the law.
“It’s un-American to criminalize immigrants for wanting to come to this country for a better life. This is why ICE to be defunded,” she tweeted.
She was responding to a report that ICE requested additional space for housing detainees in her home state of Minnesota. According to MPR News, Shelbourne County proposed meeting ICE’s request by expanding its jail so that it could house 500 immigrant detainees.
About three-fourths of ICE detainees in 2018 had previous criminal convictions, MPR News reported. While ICE generally focuses on detaining immigrants with criminal histories, the agency arrests other illegal immigrants as well.
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ICE did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.
The latest attack on the agency came after Acting ICE Director Mark Morgan told Fox News on Wednesday that Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s push for abolition was “absolutely irresponsible.” – read more