Senator Blumenthal: Week in Review 3/20/2026-3/27/2026

Condemning DHS Policies Brutalizing Children

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ranking Member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, and U.S. Representative Robert Garcia (D-CA), Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, held a bicameral public forum to receive testimony on how violent tactics, a disregard for laws and constitutional rights, and new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) policies have harmed children in America.

The forum, entitled "Our Values at Stake: How Trump's Immigration Agenda Endangers Children," featured testimony from young people and mothers about their personal experiences being assaulted or separated from their families by DHS agents. The forum also featured testimony from a school administrator about the impact of current DHS policies on schools and children. Blumenthal delivered an opening statement at the forum, highlighting how DHS's cruel policies are leaving American children with lasting trauma.

"The second Trump Administration's immigration enforcement has known no limits in its cruelty. They punish people simply for exercising their constitutional rights, like the First Amendment that protects people's right to speak and dissent and protest. They've dragged people out of their cars, tear-gassed and beaten anyone who happened to be in their path. They've murdered American citizens. But even through all of it, nothing is more emblematic of the cruelty and inhumanity and callousness of this Administration than the way they have treated children," Blumenthal said.

Blumenthal continued, "And I just want to say, part of the reason why we're here today is the persistent reporting of journalists who also have shown indomitable courage in making these stories real. Today, we're going to hear from six brave witnesses about ICE and CBP and about how they are terrorizing children in our neighborhoods. These extraordinary individuals have shown incredible courage, not just to persevere, but to come forward and tell the world about the callousness that should shock the conscience of all Americans."

"The heartless indifference to the safety and well-being of our children across America is an indelible stain. It is indelible. It is now part of our history. And in making it part of our history and highlighting it today, we want to reverse those practices and reform the agency. And right now, in the United States senate, we are debating legislation that would in fact, reform this out-of-control, reckless, lawless agency. The shock value of your testimony today should move our nation and should persuade my colleagues that now is the time for reform," Blumenthal concluded.

A video of Blumenthal's opening remarks at today's forum is available here.

Blumenthal further slammed DHS's brutal policies hurting young people on Twitter/X.

"The ripple effect of ICE & DHS cruelly against children is far reaching. I was honored to hear these brave young people share their powerful stories of harrowing ICE violence & trauma. No one-let alone kids-should have to endure this unconscionable & intolerable inhumanity," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

At the forum, Blumenthal heard testimony from three young Americans that were assaulted or separated from their families by DHS agents.

Arnoldo Bazan: Arnoldo is a 16-year-old U.S. citizen from Houston, Texas. Arnoldo was assaulted by federal immigration agents on his way to school; he sought treatment at a nearby hospital for neck injuries described by the hospital as resulting from being beaten and choked. He still experiences physical and mental side effects.

"Officers grabbed and ripped my shirt. One officer put me in a chokehold. The officer choking me told me, 'You're done. You're done.' His grip was so tight that I wondered if I would make it out alive. With all of my strength, I screamed that I was underage and from the United States...All of this affects me to this day. When I go to school, I pray I come home safely. Whenever I hear sirens or I see an officer, my heart starts racing. I don't even know when I will see my father again. I'm sharing this story so it doesn't happen to other people. This is not the America that I know," Arnoldo said.

Arnoldo's written testimony is available here. A video of Arnoldo's testimony is available here.

Fernando Hernández García: Fernando is an 18-year-old U.S. citizen from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas. He has been living on his own and separated from his family since his parents and siblings, including his younger sister, Sara, who is also a U.S. citizen, were removed to Mexico after being detained while on the way to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston to seek treatment for Sara's novel medical condition; she had surgery to remove a brain tumor in 2024.

"I remember this day like it was yesterday because it was the last day I remember feeling like a kid. When I heard the news, I couldn't breathe. I didn't know what I was going to do. My mom worried about me returning to our home in South Texas alone, but I had to finish high school, and I wanted to make sure I could do everything in my power to stay on top of the bills and keep the home my mom and dad had sacrificed so much for. Over the past year, I've worked hard to make sure I was the first in my family to graduate from a U.S. high school. My parents were not there to celebrate this honor with me," Fernando said.

Fernando's written testimony is available here. A video of Fernado's testimony is available here.

Ana Michelle Ramirez Sanan: Michelle is an 18-year-old U.S. citizen from Chelsea, Massachusetts. Michelle was restrained by a DHS agent after her mother and autistic 13-year-old brother, also a U.S. citizen, were dragged from their car and detained. DHS agents then violently arrested Michelle's 50-year-old mother, who has legal status and has lived in the U.S. for over twenty years, in front of her and her brother.

"I am speaking out today for the families who can't speak against ICE. I am speaking out today to help people understand who ICE is hurting. I am a citizen. I'm also a sister, a high school student, and a daughter. I like drawing, dancing, and spending time with my family. Kids and teenagers who look like me aren't safe, even in our own communities, even if we follow all the rules. ICE may have let my family go, but they took so much more from us. They made me feel like my family didn't matter and that no one would care what happens to us," Michelle said.

Michelle's written testimony is available here. A video of Michelle's testimony is available here.

Blumenthal also heard from two mothers about how DHS agents assaulted them and their children and from a school administrator about the impact of current DHS policies on schools an schoolchildren.

Anabel Romero: Ms. Romero is a U.S. citizen from Gooding, Idaho and mother of three. During an immigration raid, Ms. Romero was separated from her 6- and 8-year-old children at gunpoint; she and her 14-year-old daughter were then assaulted and zip-tied. Ms. Romero's teenage daughter did not testify but joined her at the forum.

"That day completely changed our lives. We were degraded. Our rights were violated. Our sense of safety and security was demolished. My kids, and I can't trust enforcement anymore. All that violence was preplanned and targeted on a Sunday afternoon family [outing]. And not a word of apology or regret after. We deserve better from our government. We demand better from our government," Ms. Romero said.

Ms. Romero's written testimony is available here. A video of her testimony is available here.

Andreina Mejia: Ms. Mejia is a U.S. citizen from Arleta, California. She and her special needs 15-year-old son were separated, held gunpoint and then handcuffed by DHS agents outside of a local high school.

"I'm just thankful that I was there to protect them, because I just think about that day, and I just think if I wasn't there to protect them and my son would have gotten scared, what if they had just, you know, they would have shot him or something. So, it's been kind of difficult for him to go to school. He would wake up crying. He sees cars with tinted windows, and he's scared. He tells me, 'Mom, is it them?' and I'm like, 'No, it's just a regular car,'" Ms. Mejia said.

Ms. Mejia's written testimony is available here. A video of her testimony is available here.

Zena Stenvik: Ms. Stenvik is the Superintendent of Columbia Heights Public Schools, a school district just north of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father were one of several families in the school district terrorized by DHS agents during the "surge" in Minnesota.

"While children are resilient and I'm cautious to not generalize trauma, the patterns we are seeing are consistent and significant. We are seeing increased separation anxiety, with students struggling to be apart from their parents during the school day after months and months of confinement and fear. We're seeing heightened difficulty with transitions. One student who is detained in Texas now experiences distress when leaving the classroom to go to art or gym class. He reported that separation from their trusted teacher and classroom removes the sense of safety. We're also seeing increased stress responses such as fight-flight-freeze among students who experienced direct or indirect trauma. Students are more fearful of strangers and unfamiliar vehicles, particularly SUVs or individuals in uniform, which they often associate with ICE agents. Even distant sirens can trigger anxiety," Ms. Stenvik said.

Ms. Stenvik's written testimony is available here. A video of her testimony is available here.

Blumenthal amplified the witnesses' testimonies on Twitter/X.

"While on her way to Texas Children's Hospital for essential treatment & care, Fernando Hernandez Garcia's young sister was detained by immigration agents & removed to Mexico-separating the siblings & leaving lasting trauma," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

"Ana Michelle Ramirez Sanan discusses how DHS agents dragged her younger brother with autism from a car, violently arrested her mother, & prevented her from helping them," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

"A parent's worst fear is that their child will be hurt or traumatized & yet ICE is making this nightmare a reality. With guts, grit, & grace, Anabel shared her powerful story-exemplifying the harm ICE is inflicting on families across the country," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

"A day that changed her family's life-violation of rights, preplanned violence, a demolishing of safety & security. Anabel Romero demands better from our government after an immigration raid left her & her children terrified & traumatized," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

"Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik shares how DHS agents have terrorized schools & schoolchildren in Minnesota-including 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos," with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

Ahead of the forum, Blumenthal and Robert Garcia released a report detailing the scope and scale of the violence and trauma being brought upon children by the Trump Administration's immigration agenda. Drawing from publicly available information, the report documents 128 children who have been injured, left unattended, or otherwise put at direct risk of harm as a result of operations by DHS personnel.

The report is entitled "Cruelty is the Point: How Trump's Immigration Agenda Endangers Children."

"The Trump Administration has pursued a lawless and cruel immigration agenda-brutally damaging countless children across the country," said Blumenthal. "Our investigation has documented the cases of 128 children who have been injured, assaulted, left unattended, or otherwise put at risk by DHS agents-clearly only a fraction of the victims. Our findings bely the Trump Administration's claim that they are targeting the 'worst of the worst' and reveal the devastating consequences of the Trump Administration's draconian policies."

The full text of the Committees' report is available here.

Promoting Protections for Kids Online Safety

Blumenthal released the following statement after a jury in Los Angeles determined that Meta and YouTube had designed their products to be addictive and had caused immense harm to the plaintiff as a child and teen:

"This verdict is the beginning of real justice for parents across the country that have suffered and faced heartbreaking loss from Big Tech's greed. It is also powerful proof that the Kids Online Safety Act-to provide accountability and protections for all young people in America-is urgently needed. I would urge any member of Congress that continues to do Mark Zuckerberg's bidding to look at this verdict and their conscience. It's time to enact the Kids Online Safety Act into law."

Blumenthal is the author of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) with U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN).

Blumenthal and Blackburn first introduced KOSA in February 2022, following reporting by the Wall Street Journal and after spearheading a series of five subcommittee hearings with social media companies and advocates on the repeated failures by tech giants to protect kids on their platforms. KOSA will require platforms to enable the strongest privacy settings by default, force platforms to prevent and mitigate specific dangers to minors, provide parents and educators new controls to help protect children, and require independent audits and research into social media companies.

On the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee

Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee Ranking Member Blumenthal released the following statement on a failed vote to strike down the Trump Administration's abortion ban at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), which prohibits abortion counseling and care for more than 462,000 women veterans of reproductive age-even in cases of rape, incest, or if a veteran's health is endangered.

"Republicans just voted to uphold an abortion ban for 462,000 women veterans-even in cases of rape, incest, or if their health is endangered. Shamefully, they are denying women veterans who have been raped or whose health is at risk the essential health care they need. Today, Republicans showed America they believe in abortion bans-and make no mistake, veterans will suffer as a result."

50 Senate Republicans voted to strike down Blumenthal's Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolution, which aimed to overturn the Trump Administration's policy ending abortion counseling entirely and abortion care for veterans who have been raped or whose pregnancy is threatening their health. The vote failed 48-50.

Ahead of the CRA vote, Blumenthal took to the Senate floor to underscore the danger of the Trump Administration's policy for hundreds of thousands of women veterans. He emphasized the harm of this policy by sharing real-life stories of veterans who have experienced life-endangering complications from pregnancy and sexual assault. A video of Blumenthal's floor remarks are available here.

Blumenthal's CRA follows a final rule filed by the Trump VA to end VA's ability to provide these services for veterans. A CRA resolution is an oversight tool Congress can use to overturn final rules issued by federal agencies with a simple majority vote.

In September 2022, VA began to offer abortion counseling to all pregnant veterans and CHAMPVA beneficiaries, and abortion care in cases of rape, incest, or life or health endangerment of the veteran or CHAMPVA beneficiary. This was in response to the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling, which created urgent risks to the lives and health of pregnant veterans and CHAMPVA beneficiaries in states that banned or otherwise severely restricted access to abortion.

More than 462,000 women veterans of reproductive age are enrolled in VA health care, and more than 112,000 women of reproductive age are enrolled in CHAMPVA. More than half of these women live in states that have enacted abortion bans or restrictions.

Blumenthal held a press conference ahead of the Senate vote on his CRA to overturn the Trump Administration's policy ending abortion counseling entirely and abortion care for veterans who have been raped or whose pregnancy is threatening their health. Blumenthal was joined by veterans, reproductive health care advocates, and lawmakers.

On Twitter/X, Blumenthal further slammed the Trump Administration's harmful abortion ban on women veterans and called on his Republican colleagues to support his CRA ahead of the Senate vote.

"Sickeningly, the Trump Administration has implemented an abortion ban on women veterans, even in cases of rape, incest, or health endangerment. If my Republican colleagues believe in protecting women veterans, they must support my resolution overturning this cruel policy," wrote Blumenthal on Twitter/X.

Slamming Trump Judicial Nominees for Blatant Lack of Impartiality

Blumenthal pressed Sheria Clark, President Donald Trump's nominee to serve as U.S. District Judge for the District of South Carolina; Kathleen Lane, President Trump's nominee to serve as U.S. District Judge for the District of Montana; Evan Rikhye, President Trump's nominee to serve as Judge for the District Court of the Virgin Islands; and Kara Westercamp, President Trump's nominee to serve as Judge of the United States Court of International Trade, about the results of the 2020 election and the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.

In a hearing before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, the nominees repeatedly dodged Blumenthal's question about who won the 2020 election, instead delivering slight variations of Westerkamp's response: "Under our Constitution, the Electoral College votes for the President and then that is certified by Congress."

After Westercamp refused to provide a straightforward answer, Blumenthal said, "I'm not asking you what the Constitution says. I'm asking you for your view, factually. And frankly, we've received this kind of canned, ridiculous answer before-as you know, because you were instructed to give this answer, right?"

After each nominee repeatedly dodged Blumenthal's questions, Blumenthal concluded, "The answers here are obviously canned, pre-rehearsed, Orwellian in their denial of reality, and are a subversion of this process. They are an insult to this committee, but they also fundamentally show a complete lack of independence, backbone, and impartiality, which are the fundamental requirements of a United States District Court judge or a judge on any panel."

A video of Blumenthal's remarks is available here.

Blumenthal further called out Trump's judicial nominees for their inability to demonstrate integrity on Twitter/X.

"Pressed by my questions, Trump's judicial nominees give identical, nonsensical canned responses-looking ridiculous & demonstrating an abject absence of independence & integrity. Lacking a backbone now, they won't have one on the bench," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

"Trump's delusional denial of Jan 6 is infectious-installing a plaque honoring courageous Capitol police in the dead of night & force feeding judicial nominees canned responses. Their spineless falsehoods show they're unfit for the federal bench, lacking independence & integrity," wrote Blumenthal with an accompanying video on Twitter/X.

Blumenthal Bulletin

Blumenthal released a statement on $15.38 billion contract for Electric Boat.

Blumenthal challenged the FCC to conduct a full review of foreign investment concerns in Paramount and Warner Bros. merger.

Blumenthal pressed the Trump Administration to reverse course on the rollback of federal employee protections.

Blumenthal introduced a bill to extend WIC eligibility for new moms.

Blumenthal demanded answers from Secretary Mullin over Lewandowoski's role in DHS contracts.

Blumenthal introduced a bill restoring fairness in federal student aid.

Blumenthal highlighted the Accountability for Federal Law Enforcement Act.

Blumenthal joined MS NOW to discuss Trump's war of whim, impulse, and delusion in Iran.

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