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Jayapal pushes block on detention of U.S. citizens through DHS funding bill
Jayapal seeks to modify the bill's language to stop ICE's "reckless and lawless actions".
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Jeffin T. Kaleekal - Thu, 22, Jan 2026
- 02:08 EST
- 26
Pramila Jayapal / Pramila Jayapal via X
U.S. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal has submitted an amendment to the funding bill of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), seeking to block detention and deportation of American citizens by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Jayapal, a Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Immigration, Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, announced on Jan. 21 that she seeks to modify the language of the bill to tackle, what she describes as, 'skyrocketing number of deaths and detentions of U.S> citizens in ICE's custody'.
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Jayapal said, "ICE has been terrorizing communities across this country, kidnapping and detaining immigrants and US citizens alike."
The Washington representative cited numerous examples of alleged arrests and detention of citizens and said, "In the last few days, we have seen stark examples of this, including an elderly man being walked in the freezing cold without clothes on. At my field hearing in Minnesota, we heard from a woman who was detained and taken to a designated ‘US citizens’ cell in ICE detention. We also heard from a man who stated repeatedly that he was a US citizen as ICE arrested him and agents told him, ‘that don’t matter.’ All of this is illegal and outside the scope of ICE’s jurisdiction."
As per U.S. law, "ICE cannot assert its civil immigration enforcement authority to arrest and/or detain a U .S. citizen, as mentioned in ICE's internal guidance notifications. Additionally, the notification also notes, "ICE personnel must assess the potential U.S. citizenship of an individual encountered by ICE if the individual makes or has made a claim to U.S. citizenship.
Jayapal spotlighted her demand for accountability and said, "We cannot pass the DHS funding bill without significant and meaningful guardrails to hold DHS accountable and stop their reckless and lawless actions. I hope to see this amendment seriously considered to protect Americans and further work done to overhaul this bill to rein in DHS.”
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