Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) joined a group of 22 Senate Democrats led by Senator Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) pressing the Trump administration on its recent initiatives to weaponize immigration court hearings to arrest and deport immigrants who are trying to follow the law and showing up for their legitimate court cases.
In a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem, and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Acting Director Todd Lyons, the Senators condemned these actions as an affront to due process and a distraction from going after violent criminals.
The senators began by expressing concern over recent reporting of the Trump administration’s inhumane initiatives, writing: “We are extremely concerned by reports of a recent initiative to arrest and detain noncitizens at their immigration court hearings, and in many cases, dismiss their immigration cases without advance notice and while hiding the government’s intent to arrest them […] These actions prevent noncitizens from having their fair day in court and raise serious legal and due process concerns. They also make clear that this Administration is not targeting the worst criminals and threats to public safety, instead redirecting staff and resources away from drug trafficking and human trafficking and towards these operations targeting noncriminal immigrants who are following the law and showing up for their day in court.”
The Senators concluded by articulating the horrible situation this puts hardworking immigrants who are trying to follow the law in, before making a series of information requests, writing: “These actions also place noncitizens in an impossible position. If noncitizens who fear arrest do not attend their immigration court hearing, they may receive an in absentia removal order that will newly subject them to swift detention and removal. If they do attend, they risk arrest, detention, and a swift deportation, possibly to South Sudan, Libya, or El Salvador—countries they may have no connection to. This manipulation of existing laws to enact this Administration’s mass deportation agenda is creating chaos in our immigration system while doing nothing to make our communities safer.”
The full text of the letter can be found here.
The first and only Latina senator, Senator Cortez Masto has consistently supported immigrant communities in Nevada, calling on both administrations to protect TPS holders and other immigrants, as well as leading commonsense legislation to fix our broken immigration system. She has worked to pass meaningful immigration reform that balances critical border security measures with a path to citizenship for Dreamers, TPS holders, and essential workers.
###