Activists are renewing requires President Joe Biden to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after it was reported that thousands and thousands of {dollars} will should be pulled from different applications to make up for the company’s budgetary deficit.
The company is about to spend extra taxpayer funds than ever on account of an estimated $345 million shortfall for the 2022 fiscal 12 months, Axios reported final week. Sources advised the outlet that ICE will run out of cash earlier than October until the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is ready to pull funds for different applications to make up for the shortfall.
The Defund Hate Campaign, made up of 63 organizations representing straight impacted communities and civil rights and immigrant rights advocates, is amongst these calling for Biden to terminate the company.
“Every year, ICE wastes billions of taxpayer dollars by surveilling immigrant communities, deporting people seeking safety, and incarcerating immigrants in deadly detention centers,” Gabriela Viera, advocacy supervisor at Detention Watch Network, mentioned in an announcement to Newsweek.
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“It is unacceptable for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to transfer or reprogram any amount of funding for the abusive operations of this agency with an already bloated budget of $8.1 billion,” she continued. “As witnesses to the daily violence that ICE inflicts on our communities, we demand President Biden and members of Congress condemn this money grab.”
Viera famous that 4 girls had just lately filed a grievance accusing a male nurse of sexually assaulting them at an ICE detention middle in Georgia that was described by The Intercept because the “deadliest immigration jail” within the nation.
“No amount of funding ever has or ever will fix ICE because this abuse is endemic to the agency,” Viera added. “It has repeatedly shown to callously disregard people’s dignity, health, and safety, in addition to Congressional spending authority. The agency must be defunded.”
Juliana Nascimento, deputy director of federal advocacy at United We Dream, mentioned in an announcement to Newsweek: “ICE is a deadly agency that has wreaked havoc and caused pain on immigrant communities. ICE gets billions in funding all while there are continued reports of widespread abuse of people in their custody.”
ICE has a “history of misusing funds,” Nascimento added.
A report from the DHS Office of Inspector General revealed earlier this 12 months that ICE wasted about $17 million on resort rooms to deal with migrants that went largely unused between April and June final 12 months.
“Instead of giving them more money, Congress should focus on funding our lives, including providing funding for community-based programs that live up to our values of welcoming people who are immigrants,” Nascimento mentioned.
A DHS spokesperson advised Newsweek: “Departments and agencies across the government utilize end of year reprogramming actions to better align resources and fund priority needs. As it does every year, DHS is reprogramming funds within and between its components.”
Newsweek reached out to the White House for remark.