April 04, 2017

Rep. Gallego Issues Statement on CHC Meeting with DHS Secretary Kelly

Washington, D.C. –Today Congressman Ruben Gallego and members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus met with Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to discuss the department's indiscriminate immigration enforcement under Trump. Congressman Gallego serves as the Second Vice-Chair of the Hispanic Caucus. He issued the following statement:

"The recent tactics employed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement are unacceptable and Secretary Kelly's defense of those actions in today's meeting was equally disappointing. Under Kelly's watch, ICE agents have been known to stalk churches, schools and courthouses in order to find and arrest undocumented immigrants. His blatant denial of the facts is insulting to the intelligence of the American people but unsurprising given the Trump administration's aversion to telling the truth.

"We are already seeing the repercussions of ICE's predatory enforcement practices. The Los Angeles Police Department recently saw a sharp decline in the number of sexual assaults reported by the Latino community. Making crime victims feel like it is unsafe to cooperate with local law enforcement allows dangerous criminals to behave with impunity and threatens the safety of every American.

"As a leader of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, I will continue to hold Donald Trump, John Kelly and ICE accountable for their inhumane and shameful policies."

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