Hakeem Jeffries
๐ค SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
She's got to go.
Stephen Miller has to go.
But you can't just change policy personnel.
You've got to change the underlying implementation of those policies, not just the people who are directing what is occurring.
I think to your question, the agents who have been newly hired as a result of the $75 billion slush fund that Republicans put into place as part of their one big ugly bill, they shouldn't be on the streets right now until we have a clear understanding of who they are, whether they've been properly trained,
And of course, we got to change the legal landscape so that they understand that if they violate the law, they can be criminally investigated and prosecuted at the state and local level, as opposed to what they're being told right now, which is that they have the benefit of so-called absolute immunity.
And we know the Department of Justice will never go after them.
You know, when it comes to actual...
ICE agents and DHS agents, it's much worse than that because we're dealing with two different things that have to be unraveled.
So it's this notion of absolute immunity and it's this notion of sovereign immunity connected to the fact that they are federal law enforcement officers, which is why part of what we have demanded in the context of the type of changes that are necessary before the DHS funding bill can move forward is that state and local authorities
Attorney generals like Keith Ellison or Tish James have the explicit authority to actually investigate ICE agents when they break the law, particularly violently, and to criminally prosecute them if the facts in the law justify that action.
And we believe this is absolutely critical to changing behavior because if ICE agents actually know that they can be held accountable
for the type of violence and brutality being unleashed on the American people, as opposed to the Department of Justice looking the other way under Pam Bondi.
She's a disgrace.
Or even if they were somehow convicted, we know Donald Trump in all likelihood would at some point pardon them, but he can't pardon anyone who's convicted of violating state law, which is why this particular effort
In terms of accountability, state and local independent investigations is such a key demand in order to change behavior.
Unfortunately, we're at a standoff.
We haven't had any serious engagement from the White House.
Donald Trump was on the golf course yesterday.
I mean, are you kidding me?