It’s not just FEMA: ICE quietly got an extra $200 million
By Tal Kopan, CNN
As a potentially catastrophic hurricane bears down on the East Coast of the US, the shifting of $10 million from FEMA’s operating budget to fund immigration detention and deportations is drawing condemnation from Democrats.
But that’s a drop in the bucket.
The Trump administration this summer quietly redirected $200 million from all over the Department of Homeland Security to Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, despite repeated congressional warnings of ICE’s “lack of fiscal discipline” and “unsustainable” spending.
The Department of Homeland Security asked for the money, according to a document made public this week by Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley. Of the $200 million, the document says $93 million will go to immigrant detention, a 3% budget increase that will fund capacity for an additional 2,300 detainees; and $107 million for “transportation and removal,” or deportations, a 29% budget increase.
The move comes as the Trump administration has pursued an aggressive immigration agenda, ramping up arrests of undocumented immigrants and deportations.
In addition to this summer’s widely condemned move to separate families at the border, the administration has drawn criticism for arresting a far greater rate of noncriminal undocumented immigrants and seeking to detain them much longer. On Tuesday, the administration announced it would tripling the size of an emergency temporary tent facility to house more immigrant children.
The additional $200 million would put ICE’s budget for detention and transportation at more than $3.6 billion.
More: http://www.cnn.com/2018/09/12/politics/ice-more-money-fema-dhs/index.html
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Cruel and inhumane enforcement and detention is also wasteful, particularly at a time of bloated budget deficits, thanks to unnecessary GOP tax cuts for the rich. It appears likely that the Trump Administration’s plans for long-term detention of children will be found illegal. Also, the irresponsible movement of money and lack of accountability within DHS is contemptuous of Congressional oversight.
This Administration’s immigration policies are totally out of control.
We need regime change, starting with meaningful Congressional oversight. It’s not going to happen unless and until the GOP is ousted.
PWS
09-12-18