Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday he believes the Department of Homeland Security will “pause” its raids on illegal immigrants from Central America following an outcry from Democratic members of Congress who say families and individuals are being denied due process.
Reid told reporters on Tuesday he spoke with Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson, who recently defended the deportation raids and said they would continue.
“He understands the concern we have,” Reid told reporters. “I think we are moving forward to a resolution and I think you are going to find a pause in these deportations.”
When Reid was asked whether President Obama would announce and end to the raids in his final State of the Union address Tuesday night, Reid said, “I don’t know.”
Soon after he spoke, a spokesman for Reid said the senator was only “expressing his belief” that he “hopes” there will be a pause in the deportations.
Reid’s announcement came as Democrats gathered in the House to denounce the administration’s immigration raids at a televised press conference just hours before the president’s speech.
Democrats have had at least two heated confrontations with Obama administration officials in meetings in the past two weeks, including one Tuesday afternoon with White House counsel Neil Eggleston.
Democrats say they believe the raids are being carried out to discourage further immigration from Central America. They say those being deported are not being afforded the opportunity to seek refugee status which they may be entitled to because many are fleeing violence in their home countries.
House Democrats said Reid did not tell them about his conversation with Johnson or the “pause” in the raids.
“We have urged that a suspension of effort be made until we make sure that we’re not sending somebody back to be murdered,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., said. “We think that is a modest request. We hope that it will be heard.”
