Democratic governors and Congress members shifted blame for immigration enforcement to the federal government and called ICE immigration enforcement a “gestapo operation” in opening statements at a congressional hearing Thursday.
The House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform hosted Democrat Govs. Tim Walz of Minnesota, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Kathy Hochul of New York.
U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., compared arrests by Immigration and Customs enforcement to “gestapo operations” in his opening statement.
“My dad served in the Second World War. He fought the Nazis in Northern Africa. He fought the Nazis on the Italian peninsula. And I think he’s looking down right now, and he’s happy that I’m fighting today’s Nazis,” Lynch said.
U.S. Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., criticized Walz and Lynch’s comments comparing ICE arrests to Nazi Germany. He said such comments have led to a 413% rise in assaults against ICE agents.
“Do you and other Democrat politicians understand why referencing ICE as Gestapo is offensive?” Comer asked.
“We see numerous videos of rioters obstructing and assaulting federal enforcements after your remarks, including in Los Angeles,” Comer said.
Governors on the panel said that the federal government is responsible for upholding immigration laws, while states continue to maintain order.
“Now we have a broken immigration system in this country,” Walz said.
Minnesota requires state and local law enforcement agencies to cooperate with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, despite several cities in the state including Minneapolis and St. Paul limiting cooperation with federal immigration officers.
“Securing our borders does not mean we sacrifice our constitutional values. Unfortunately, the cruel and misguided policies of this current administration fail to live up to these values,” Walz said.
Kathy Hochul boasted about New York’s policies on immigration and said the state has “prospered” from immigration to the state.
“In New York, we understand the difference Between going after criminals and traumatizing law-abiding families,” Hochul said.
Both Walz and Hochul said it is the responsibility of Congress and the federal government to uphold immigration laws and protect the border.
“You all have the power to legislate, to investigate this administration’s abuse and overreach and protect the American people,” Walz said.
“If you truly care about public safety, if you truly care about the economy, if you truly care about human dignity, then sit down, negotiate, have real reform, secure the border, revive legal pathways and let people work,” Hochul added.
Republicans on the committee showed photos of non-citizens who committed crimes against U.S. residents. Republicans then asked the panel of governors about those crimes, the victims and why their states wouldn’t work with ICE.
Hochul took the brunt of those questions, but similar questions were posed to Pritzker and Walz.
