House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stated he would not rule out the possibility of Democrats voting to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) if the party regains control of the House, although he downplayed the extent of such calls within his party.
"I’ve spoken to several of the incoming members of Congress across the ideological spectrum," Jeffries told CNN’s “State of the Union.” "Not a single person has raised those issues other than, obviously, what they’ve seen from House Democrats in pushing back against an out-of-control ICE."
Jeffries asserted that immigration enforcement should be "fair, just and humane," adding that current practices do not meet that standard. He called for ICE agents to "conduct themselves like every other cop, police officer and law enforcement agent in the country."
Multiple Democratic candidates running for House seats in the upcoming midterm cycle have included abolishing ICE as part of their platforms. One such candidate, Darializa Avila Chevalier, who recently won a primary against Rep. Adriano Espaillat, has publicly called for abolishing ICE.
Jeffries highlighted House Democrats' efforts to resist funding ICE without significant reforms to the agency, a stance that has previously contributed to government shutdowns. He stated that House Democrats have "taken a strong position as it relates to not giving a dime to Donald Trump’s violent mass deportation machine until, of course, there is dramatic reform in this country."
The debate over ICE funding has impacted government funding negotiations for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins October 7. House Republicans recently passed a measure to avert a shutdown, but it still requires Senate approval.
In a separate discussion during the interview, Jeffries addressed a CNN report about a disagreement between himself, Rep. Gregory Meeks, and Senator Bernie Sanders concerning a primary race in North Carolina. Jeffries described the interaction with Sanders as a "candid conversation" regarding the specific race. He concluded by emphasizing the importance of Democrats regaining control of Congress to counter "MAGA extremism."