Democrats Voted To Fund ICE

This week, the United States Senate is voting on a budget bill that could decide whether parts of the government shut down or not. But the potential shutdown isn't the real story here. Because if the government stays open, it won't be because the system worked. It'll be because Democrats helped pass a bill that sends billions of dollars more to fund ICE. That's the part that matters. Hey, I'm Jason. This is Wrong Enough to Know Better. In this episode, I want to look at the Democrats who say they oppose ISIS behavior but are still voting for a bill that increases its funding. The budget bill passed the House on January 22nd and the vote was 220 to 207 and seven House Democrats voted for it for a bill that includes more funding for ICE. Those Democrats made that vote after Renee Good was murdered by a federal ICE agent. While protests were already massive, and while protesters already had a general strike planned for the very next day, Democratic votes helped pass a bill with more funding for ICE anyway, knowing exactly what the agency had just done and knowing that there was national outrage over it. ICE enforcement had already led to the death of Renee Good, a US citizen. That's the backdrop of this funding vote. An agency under national scrutiny for using lethal force against its citizens isn't being restrained. It's getting greater funding. And when agencies with this kind of record get more money instead of limits, that tells them that their behavior isn't a problem. It tells them that their behavior is acceptable. These are the same politicians who talk about protecting democracy and stopping authoritarian drift. But when the vote is about money and power, they're happy to fund the enforcement arm that citizens themselves are afraid of. The excuse that they use is avoiding a shutdown, keeping the government running. But government isn't neutral. What it funds is what it strengthens. And right now, those Democrats are choosing to strengthen coercive enforcement while telling their voters that they oppose the abuses. The bill is now before the Senate, and John Federman, the Democratic senator from Pennsylvania, has already said that he'll vote for it.