House Lawmakers Give Final Greenlight to $70 Billion for Immigration Enforcement

The House of Representatives voted 214-212 to pass a bill sending $70 billion to the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) immigration enforcement agencies, marking the end of a debate that has consumed Capitol Hill for the last several months.

After the funding bill passed the Senate last week, it will now move to President Donald Trump’s desk for final approval and, if signed, will fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) for the next three years.

The measure faced opposition from Democrats, who in February sought to delay funding over concerns about ICE and CBP officers’ conduct and reports of poor conditions in detention facilities nationwide. Those concerns remained present on the House floor before and after the vote.

Representative Joaquin Castro (D-TX) has been especially active in advocating against what he describes as “inhumane” living conditions in ICE detention centers in Texas. He said the agency’s conduct over the past year indicates that reform is needed before Congress provides additional funding.

“ICE is ripping apart families and imprisoning children instead of making communities safer,” Rep. Castro said. “As a country, we will look back on this era with shame.”

As in the Senate last week, House Democrats failed to pass amendments blocking taxpayer funds from benefiting Jan. 6, 2021, offenders through any government fund. It also failed to require reforms to ICE and CBP immigration enforcement practices, which Rep. Sylvia Garcia (D-TX) said she was particularly frustrated to see.

“The American people do not want this,” Rep. Garcia said. “They do not want more raids, more masked agents and more taxpayer-funded cruelty in their communities.”

However, Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-TX) countered that the initial shutdown of DHS, and potentially having to deal with another if the bill had not passed, was even more dangerous.

“For 76 days, our Democrat colleagues held hostage the American people’s safety and security,” Rep. Arrington said. “These are the people risking their lives to defend us, to protect us and our communities.”

Rep. Lance Gooden (R-TX) agreed that the Democrats’ defiance toward funding ICE and CBP is politically motivated, adding that they’re “obsessed” with discussing President Trump rather than the agencies noted in the bill.

According to Rep. Gooden, today’s vote underscores what he thinks Democrats really want.

“They’re continuing to stand against this today, but they won’t actually come out and say what we know they mean,” Rep. Gooden said. “And that’s that they want an open border.”

Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) said the House will continue conversations around strengthening border and immigration policies.

“If we are going to be removing people through the funding of ICE, then you shouldn’t be leaving the door open for them to come back in,” Rep. Roy said. “We’ve got to have permanent reform and permanent changes to ensure people can’t come back in.”