Over the last few weeks, members of Congress have been making a joke over their oversight rights by creating a spectacle at ICE facilities.
Well, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem has had enough, announcing all new rules for visits by members of Congress.
In May, several members of Congress and a local Democrat mayor conducted “oversight” at an ICE facility in New Jersey.
This resulted in the mayor being arrested, later released, and also an indictment against a New Jersey lawmaker for obstruction and assault.
The new golden child of the Democrat Party, Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), responded, “Charging Members of Congress for doing our jobs is a dangerous precedent to set."
She added, “It reveals the increasingly authoritarian nature of this administration and its relentless, illegal attempts to suppress any dissent or oversight, including from judges.”
After several other incidents took place, including Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) grandstanding at a DHS press conference, Noem has had enough.
Noem has issued a new policy, which will require members of Congress to give proper notification before a visit.
The policy states, “ICE will not facilitate meetings with detainees in detention facilities without valid, signed privacy releases."
It goes on, “If Members and/or Congressional staff would like to meet with a specific detainee or set of detainees, please provide names, alien registration numbers, and valid, signed privacy releases with your request.”
The response from Democrats was just as one would expect, with Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) stating, “[DHS Secretary] Kristi Noem’s new policy to block congressional oversight of ICE facilities is not only unprecedented, it is an affront to the Constitution and Federal law. Noem is now not only attempting to restrict when Members can visit, but completely blocking access to ICE Field Offices – even if Members schedule visits in advance."
He added, “No matter how much she and [President] Trump want to force us to live under their authoritarian rule, ICE is not above oversight and the Department must follow the law.”
I would state that it is hard to conduct oversight when you are giving notice to an operation that you are coming, but Democrats are clearly abusing this and using the visits as a publicity stunt to push a narrative.
If they are going to act like children, I honestly cannot fault Noem for treating them as such.
