Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images
Immigration agency leaders appeared before Congress for the first time since two U.S. citizens were shot and killed by federal immigration officers in Minneapolis.
Democrats, and some Republicans, on the House Homeland Security Committee on Tuesday took the opportunity to criticize the tactics used by officers on the ground and the strategy of top Trump administration officials to curb illegal migration.
The criticism came as congressional funding is set to expire on Friday for the Homeland Security Department — the department that houses Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection and Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The hearing underscored how deeply divided Republicans and Democrats remain on top-level changes to immigration enforcement in the wake of the shootings. It suggested Congress is inching closer to another stopgap bill to fund the department in the absence of deeper agreement.
Here are some other takeaways from the hearing:
1. Deaths of two U.S. citizens stay top of mind
Both Republicans and Democrats discussed the deaths of Renee Macklin Good and Alex Pretti, the 37-year-olds killed by DHS officers in two separate incidents.
Rep. Andrew Garbarino, N.Y., the Republican chairman of the committee, called the deaths, as well as increased violent rhetoric generally, “unacceptable and preventable.”
“The safety of law enforcement and the communities they serve and protect must always come first. When officials or elected leaders rush to conclusions about law enforcement, or their fellow Americans, public trust suffers,” Garbarino said in his opening remarks, calling for a “complete” investigation.
“I cannot put myself in the shoes of law enforcement, nor can I imagine what the families of Ms. Good and Mr. Pretti are enduring today,” he said.
But ICE acting Director Todd Lyons — who hasn’t been confirmed by the Senate yet — deflected questions regarding the deaths. He said he would “not comment on any ongoing investigations.”
He also sought to deflect criticism of President Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for labeling Pretti as a “domestic terrorist,” saying as elected or appointed officials, “that’s their right to their comments.”
But Lyons, in response to Democrats’ questions, did emphasize that U.S. citizens shouldn’t be caught up in immigration enforcement.
“ICE officers and special agents are trained in the Immigration and Nationality Act, so anyone that is here legally or lawfully or a US citizen should not be concerned about being deported or detained,” Lyons said. He later drew a distinction between someone being “arrested” – which he acknowledged could happen to a U.S. citizen — and being “detained” on a longer basis.
NPR witnessed multiple instances in Minnesota where immigration agents drove around Minneapolis and questioned people about their immigration status, with the state’s attorney general saying U.S. citizens were detained.
The detention of U.S. citizens has also happened under prior administrations. A 2021 Government Accountability Office report found that over a five-year period, U.S. citizens had encounters with immigration officers that could lead to their arrest and even deportation.
2. Bipartisan questions about training and internal oversight
ICE and CBP officials broke down training and resources available to officers, in response to repeated questions about how officers are treating U.S. citizens and others.
Lyons said that officers undergo three months of training, which includes 47 days at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Academy in Georgia. Law enforcement officers and special agents who were certified in the past got to have a shorter training module, focused on just topics like the Immigration and Nationality Act.
“They would have to go through the rigorous immigration training, which, unfortunately … immigration law is just as confusing and long as [the] tax code,” Lyons said.
Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., asked Lyons how many ICE officers have been fired for their conduct. Lyons declined to comment on personnel matters.
But Lyons did denounce some of the language immigration officers were caught using on video. For example, in a video shared on social media after Pretti’s death, an officer can be heard telling a woman: “if you raise your voice, I will erase your voice.”
When asked about the footage, Lyons said he hadn’t seen it but said ICE “does respect and adhere to the First Amendment” and that the statement heard in the video “doesn’t represent the values of the men and women of ICE.”
3. Republicans share some concerns with Democrats
Republicans voiced concern about two issues that Democrats have frequently raised: roving patrols and the use of body cameras.
Under the second Trump administration, CBP, which houses the Border Patrol agency, has taken a leading role in enforcing federal immigration laws in the interior of the country, rather than strictly near the borders.
In response to widespread criticism of the events in Minneapolis, Trump removed Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino from serving as the public face of the immigration presence there, replacing him with White House border czar Tom Homan. Trump later said in an interview that “maybe we can use a little bit of a softer touch” when it comes to immigration enforcement.
GOP Rep. Michael McCaul, Texas, said he believed “roving patrols should be done at the border rather than in the major cities of the United States.” He also applauded the leadership changes in Minneapolis as “returning to the original mission of ICE.”
Lawmakers from both parties have also pushed for greater use of body cameras to aid in oversight of agents’ actions on the ground.
Lyons said that ICE had 3,000 cameras for 13,000 officers and Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott noted that only half of 20,000 CBP officers have body cameras.
Lyons pledged to Rep. Tony Gonzalez, R-Texas, that body camera footage of enforcement in Minneapolis would be released to the public and that he welcomes all officers getting such cameras.
Scott, from Customs and Border Protection, also pleaded for Congress to fully fund the body camera program for his agency, too, noting that while there has been money for the physical devices, there have not been the personnel to fully implement the body camera program.
“So fund the entire program so that we can be transparent and that we can make sure America knows what we’re doing, because that trust is critically important,” Scott urged lawmakers.
Noem, the homeland security secretary, has said the department is sending body cameras to every field officer in Minneapolis and that the body camera program would be expanded nationwide as funding allows.
Democrats want this codified into law.
4. Most requests were still partisan
The rhetoric and questions still seemed largely split along partisan lines. Republicans described the work done by ICE as “remarkable,” while Democrats called for the “abolishment” and “dismanteling” of the agency.
Other Democratic proposals continue to face an uphill battle for GOP support, including calls for officers to display identifying information such as their last names on their uniforms, and to prohibit them from wearing face coverings.
Rep. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., asked Lyons whether he would commit to unmasking his officers. Lyons said no. And Republicans argued that banning face masks would make it easier for people to dox federal agents — a common refrain from the administration.
5. ICE was in the spotlight, while CBP, USCIS — and the looming shutdown — took a backseat
Both Republicans and Democrats peppered Lyons with questions about his agency’s operations. But lawmakers generally did not drill down into the changes at CBP and USCIS, despite those agencies’ growing roles in immigration enforcement over the last year.
Questions for CBP’s Scott still centered around border enforcement. That comes even as the Border Patrol has gone beyond its traditional jurisdiction of 100 miles from U.S. borders to conduct enforcement in cities like Minneapolis, and lead operations in Illinois, North Carolina and Louisiana.
All three agencies hedged in response to questions about whether their operations would be affected if DHS shuts down on Friday. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow reminded lawmakers that his agency is funded primarily by the fees people pay when they submit various forms and applications, so his employees would still get paid.
And ICE and CBP both got a huge infusion of cash from Congress in Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act last summer — making ICE the highest-funded U.S. law enforcement agency.
Lyons said the shutdown could affect the Department of Homeland Security’s work related to transnational crime, but he did not note any impact to immigration operations. And Scott also didn’t detail how the shutdown would affect personnel, just saying: “I agree America becomes less safe.”
Their responses suggest any lapse in funding could most affect non-immigration agencies inside the Department of Homeland Security, like the Transportation Security Administration and Federal Emergency Management Agency — potentially spelling trouble for U.S. air travel and disaster response.
—NPR’s Barbara Sprunt contributed to this report.
