“A GOP-backed megabill quietly turned ICE into the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency in the country — with virtually no oversight.”
When Republicans pushed President Trump’s signature domestic policy bill through Congress last year, they quietly delivered a massive windfall to Immigration and Customs Enforcement — with virtually no limits on how the money could be used.
The legislation allocated $190 billion to the Department of Homeland Security over four years, including $75 billion for ICE alone, instantly making it the highest-funded federal law enforcement agency in the country. Democrats warned at the time that the bill amounted to a blank check, supercharging immigration enforcement without meaningful oversight.
Republicans used a special budget maneuver to shield the measure from a filibuster, passing it with a simple majority and leaving Democrats unable to block it.
Now, after two American citizens were killed during federal immigration operations in Minneapolis, Democrats are trying to claw back what little leverage they have. With a government funding deadline looming on Friday, Senate Democrats are threatening to withhold votes on a spending bill — risking a partial shutdown — unless Republicans agree to impose new restrictions on ICE.
“I will vote no on any legislation that funds ICE until it is reined in and overhauled,” said Senator Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader.
Even some Republicans are beginning to express concern. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky said he was uneasy about giving ICE “billions and billions more” without clear rules or accountability.
Under the GOP bill, ICE effectively received an extra $20 billion per year, on top of its regular budget, with no reporting requirements and broad freedom to shift funds internally. Similar flexibility was granted to Customs and Border Protection, including billions earmarked for border wall construction.
Democrats are now pushing for measures such as judicial warrants for arrests, visible identification for agents, and mandatory reporting to Congress. But lawmakers warn that even a government shutdown would do little to slow ICE’s operations — because the agency already has tens of billions of dollars it can spend freely.
“Not passing the funding bill will not stop ICE,” said Senator Patty Murray. “Republicans already gave the agency enormous sums without a single Democratic vote.”
