President Trump warned in a letter to state and local leaders on Monday that the push to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement by some Democrats has invited “terror, bloodshed and suffering” to their communities, hours before he was scheduled to host an event honoring Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at the White House.
“Tragically, the brave men and women of ICE have recently been subjected to a nationwide campaign of smears, insults, and attacks by politicians shamelessly catering to the extreme elements in our society that desire lawlessness and anarchy,” the president wrote. His letter described instances in which “organized agitators defaced public property, obstructed the execution of our laws, slandered law enforcement personnel, blocked civilian access to public spaces, and created a hostile environment for our officers, agents, and support personnel.”
Some Democratic lawmakers and congressional candidates have called for ICE to be dismantled amid its involvement in separating illegal immigrant families arriving at the southwest border. Party leaders have sought to avoid the polarizing “abolish ICE” campaign by calling for various reforms to the U.S. immigration system and enforcement rules.
But Trump has used the issue in recent weeks to paint his political opponents as proponents of “open borders” who are too lenient on criminal groups like the transnational gang MS-13.
“Abolishing ICE effectively means no enforcement, no deportations, and no order – and would result in massive crime, huge loss of life, colossal economic hardship for American workers, and lawless anarchy,” he wrote Monday. He said the absence of support for ICE, or of cooperation between federal immigration officers and state and local officials, means “violent criminal members of MS-13, drug cartels, and other transnational criminal organizations will continue to export terror, bloodshed, and suffering into our most vulnerable communities.”
Trump will be joined by ICE and Customs and Border Protection agents Monday afternoon for an event that is supposed to celebrate their “tremendous work every day to protect American communities,” the White House said ahead of his appearance. Former ICE Director Thomas Homan, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., and other leaders on the issue of immigration are expected to attend.
