[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 23 (Monday, February 2, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S433-S434]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, last month, America watched in horror as 
Federal immigration officers shot and killed, in two separate 
incidents, U.S. citizens as part of the Trump administration's 
immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis. Renee Good and Alex 
Pretti should still be with us today.
  Remember why we went there? The stated purpose, according to the 
Trump administration, was very clear and understandable. We were going 
after the rapists, murderers, terrorists, child predators, and 
criminally insane who had come across the border illegally during the 
Biden administration. They were to be found and removed and held 
accountable for their conduct.
  No matter where you are on the political spectrum, that mission 
sounded sensible. Why would we ever allow those dangerous people in the 
country either by accident or intention, and why wouldn't we do 
everything we could to remove them?

[[Page S434]]

  The President promised he was going after ``the worst of the 
worst''--``the worst of the worst.'' So two people in Minneapolis lost 
their lives. Were they ``the worst of the worst''?
  Renee Good, mother of three, and Alex Pretti, a nurse at the VA 
hospital in Minneapolis, an extraordinary person, as we have come to 
know--American citizens, both--neither one of them fit the categories 
that the President railed against during his rallies and campaign. 
Instead, these two innocent people were taken from their families and 
their communities, far too soon, in instances of senseless violence at 
the hands of the U.S. Government.
  Donald Trump's immigration enforcement operations have not restored 
the so-called law and order that he promised and have not targeted 
``the worst of the worst.'' They have done exactly the opposite. In 
every place the Department of Homeland Security's roving squads have 
descended--whether Chicago, Minneapolis, or any other city--they have 
brought chaos, disorder, and fear. These operations have created a 
public safety crisis, with families terrified to leave their homes.
  I have seen it firsthand in Chicago. I go into the Hispanic areas of 
that great city, and the people are living in fear. They are afraid to 
leave their homes. Parents and school administrators are struggling to 
explain ICE attacks to children, and Americans are desperately trying 
to protect their neighbors.
  The American people support orderly immigration enforcement that 
removes violent criminals from our streets, but how we do it matters. 
Indiscriminate violent roundup of American citizens, legal residents, 
and people with no criminal record erodes civil liberties and threatens 
the rule of law.
  The American people have seen this play out with their own eyes, and 
they have had enough. This is the time to rein in this lawlessness now. 
Congress has 2 weeks to act. With the support of the American people, 
Senate Democrats stood firm and made clear we would not provide the 
votes to increase funding for the administration's illegal terror 
campaign.
  I am pleased to say that last Friday night, the Senate passed five 
remaining bipartisan appropriations bills, and all the bills together 
that we have passed fund 96 percent of the Federal Government. Over the 
course of the next 2 weeks, we will continue to negotiate with the 
White House and Republicans to deliver much needed reforms to the DHS 
appropriations bill and to rein in the illegal excesses of ICE.
  As part of those negotiations, Democrats stand strong for the 
following commonsense measures. First, Federal immigration agents need 
to remove their masks, turn on their body cameras, and wear visible, 
clear identification. I have met with law enforcement officials--people 
who have given their lives to it, career people--and asked them: Why do 
you need to be masked? Why do you need to have secret police in the 
United States of America?
  They said: You don't.
  Unfortunately, it undermines public confidence in law enforcement 
across the board. To allow these masks and to not require carrying 
video cameras is to invite the problems which we have already 
witnessed.
  ICE is not a secret police force. It wasn't meant to be, despite what 
President Trump may wish.
  Second, we need to end the roving patrols. ICE does not have free 
will to do as they please. This is a nation of laws, guided by the 
Constitution that everyone, including ICE, must abide by. This means 
Federal immigration officials must stop racial profiling and random 
arrests.
  You have seen the videotapes, and I have as well. In a Home Depot 
parking lot, a Latina--Hispanic woman--gets out of the car and starts 
to walk into the store and is stopped by ICE agents who want her to 
show proof of her citizenship. That kind of thing is not what we expect 
in America but, rather, in authoritarian regimes, which have no respect 
for individuals.

  They cannot detain Americans for hours or use excessive force against 
them just because they peacefully protested in support of neighbors and 
friends.
  ICE squads descending on homes, bursting through doors to conduct 
arrests, isn't just violent and frightening, but it is 
unconstitutional. Agents must obtain a judicial warrant signed by a 
neutral judge, not an administrative warrant in-house, to enter private 
property.
  You have seen the videos--we have all seen them--where they are 
trying to crash down doors by hitting them with axes. Those individuals 
don't have the authority to do that.
  What I am quoting--the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution--is 
black-letter constitutional law.
  Third, we need accountability. ICE and Border Patrol squads can't 
indiscriminately smash in car windows, use tear gas on protesters, and 
shoot at people without accountability. This is America. This is 
unacceptable.
  A uniformed code of conduct will rein in aggressive and excessive 
immigration enforcement to bring about accountability and, hopefully, 
begin the long process of restoring trust. When the immigration agents 
fail to follow the code of conduct, the Department of Homeland Security 
must coordinate with State and local officials to conduct a fair and 
independent investigation.
  In conclusion, as these negotiations continue to play out, I will 
continue to do my part to hold the administration accountable. After I 
asked Secretary Noem of the Department of Homeland Security to appear 
before the Senate Judiciary Committee all of last year, she refused. 
Now she says she just might be available in 4 weeks and find some time 
in her schedule to finally appear before a congressional committee in a 
public hearing and answer questions, under oath, about her 
mismanagement--tragic mismanagement--of this Agency. She has a lot of 
explaining to do. We should hold her to account, both Democrats and 
Republicans.
  My office will continue to document and report any and all instances 
of excessive force and abuse at the hands of immigration agents in 
Chicago and elsewhere.
  As Federal District Court Judge Biery said in his order, this 
weekend, requiring the release of Liam Ramos from ICE detention, 
``Observing human behavior confirms that for some among us, the 
perfidious lust for unbridled power and the imposition of cruelty in 
its quest know no bounds and are bereft of human decency. And the rule 
of law be damned.''
  What a condemnation of what is going on in Minneapolis and Chicago 
and other States.
  It might be hard to imagine, but, one day, the Trump Presidency will 
end. The statute of limitations for these crimes, however, will extend 
beyond that date. When the day comes that Donald Trump leaves the White 
House and his successor moves in to finally bring some order to this 
chaos, there will be accountability. The Department of Justice, free 
from its weaponized quest of retribution against Trump's perceived 
enemies, will have all the information it needs--video proof--to pursue 
criminal charges against government officials who actually are 
violating people's rights.
  In the meantime, my colleagues and I will continue to shine a light 
on these abuses, uphold the tenets of basic human decency, and defend 
the rule of law.
  I urge my Republican colleagues to swiftly agree to these Democratic 
reforms in DHS funding so that we may actually put a check on the 
excesses of this administration and this national terror campaign.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Britt). The majority leader.

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