Congresswoman Simon Votes Against Republican Budget Reconciliation Bill, Opposes $70 Billion for Violent Immigration Enforcement

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12) released the below statement after voting against S. 2, the Republican budget reconciliation bill. The Republican budget reconciliation bill would provide $70 billion for the Trump Administration's Immigration, Customs, Enforcement (ICE) and Customs, Border, Patrol (CBP).

"Today, I voted against the Republican reconciliation bill, which would provide $70 billionmore for the Trump Administration's immigration enforcement machine.

"A budget is a reflection of our morals. The first reconciliation bill Republicans passed last year - the Big, Ugly, Cruel Bill- was cruelty as policy. It gave the Department of Homeland Security over $170 billion dollars, while making the largest cuts to SNAP in history and gutting our healthcare system.

"After the horrors we saw earlier this year in Minnesota and Los Angeles and countless other cities across the U.S., Americans gave Congress a mandate - no blank check for ICE, no funding for state violence. My Democratic colleagues and I have successfully held the line, denying funding for ICE and CBP. Yet Republicans are hell-bent on giving more and more to these agencies.

"People are tired of being told there is not enough money for housing, healthcare, food assistance, or our schools, only to watch Congress write another blank check for detention, deportation, and surveillance. It's ludicrous. We need full bellies, safe communities, and real opportunity, not a larger enforcement bureaucracy."

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