What Do Elected Democrats Actually Plan to Do About ICE?

This story was originally reported by Marissa Martinez of The 19th . Meet Marissa and read more of their reporting on gender, politics and policy . A week after an agent with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) fatally shot a Minneapolis woman, half of American women are in favor of abolishing the law enforcement agency altogether, according to one new poll . Dismantling ICE was a policy embraced by a number of Democratic politicians under President Donald Trump’s first administration, particularly the progressive Squad made up largely of women of color legislators. But whether to double down on a renewed push to abolish the agency is a divisive issue within the party. Congress is gearing up for another spending battle this month, and Democrats have limited leverage ahead of a complex midterm landscape, especially within the Senate - so the bulk of messaging on abolishing the department has fallen on House lawmakers, including an already vocal contingent of women. “I want everybody to understand: the cuts to your health care are what’s paying for this. All of that extra money ... was taken out and given to ICE,” New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told reporters this week. “You get screwed over to pay a bunch of thugs in the street that are shooting mothers in the face.” Democrats who spoke with The 19th all highlighted the urgency to do something to limit ICE and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot by an officer on camera while in her car. They said the video was an alarming reminder that the agency needs more restrictions, though there is still internal disagreement about how far Congress should go. Polling out this week from YouGov and The Economist found that for the first time, more Americans support than oppose abolishing the agency. Support is higher among women, with 50 percent backing abolishment, up from just 28 percent in June . This and other recent survey results represent a significant turn for the public, which historically has not backed ICE’s elimination even when approval for its actions has been lower. Illinois Rep. Delia Ramirez, long a vocal opponent of Trump’s mass deportation plans, referenced the new polling that showed a plurality or majority of respondents specifically calling for abolishing the agency: “Not defund [or] take some money from them - completely get rid of ICE as an organization. It now requires members of Congress to reckon with, what does that mean?” Members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus Reps. Ilhan Omar, Delia Ramirez, and Maxwell Frost, conduct a news conference on funding and accountability for the Department of Homeland Security, with an image of Renee Good, in the Capitol Visitor Center on January 13, 2026. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images) Democrats have put forward a number of proposals to rein in ICE. In addition to an upcoming proposal to eliminate the agency coming from Michigan Rep. Shri Thanedar, lawmakers have also suggested curbing “excessive force” from federal immigration officers and requiring...

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