Cuellar Rejects Calls to Defund ICE as He Eyes Funding Role
Rep. Henry Cuellar says Immigration and Customs Enforcement should remain funded, even as progressive Democrats press to abolish or defund the agency. Cuellar, a Texas Democrat representing a border district, is poised to chair the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, giving him a significant role in decisions on ICE funding.
Cuellar said he supports stronger safeguards and oversight for the agency, and criticized enforcement actions involving people without criminal records. He also argued that local sheriffs should have a narrow part in immigration enforcement, such as reporting someone they believe is in the country unlawfully. Texas law requires most county sheriffs to seek agreements that let local officers assist federal immigration authorities.
Cuellar has backed some enforcement funding, including a January vote for a Department of Homeland Security bill that included billions for ICE. He later opposed a Republican-backed $70 billion enforcement package, citing oversight concerns. He also said Democrats should not return to the Biden administration’s border approach, which he criticized as failing to secure the border.
He criticized Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star and said state leaders should coordinate with federal Border Patrol, regardless of which party controls the White House. Democratic Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa has criticized ICE tactics and Abbott’s operation, but Cuellar said he had not heard her call for defunding ICE. The funding debate comes amid expanded federal enforcement and state laws in several Democratic-led states limiting cooperation with immigration officials.
Cuellar’s ICE Funding Role Tests Democrats’ Push for Accountability
As progressives call for abolishing or defunding ICE, Rep. Henry Cuellar is drawing a line against dismantling the agency—even as he acknowledges the need for stronger safeguards. The Texas Democrat is poised to chair the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, putting him in a key position over ICE funding.
Cuellar has criticized ICE actions against people without criminal records and called for greater oversight. He says local sheriffs should have only a limited role in federal immigration enforcement, even as Texas law requires most county sheriffs to seek agreements allowing local officers to help. His position highlights the stakes for Democrats weighing enforcement funding against concerns about agency conduct.
Cuellar voted for a January Homeland Security funding bill that included billions for ICE, then opposed a separate Republican-backed $70 billion enforcement package over oversight concerns. He has also criticized the Biden administration’s border policy, while faulting Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s Operation Lone Star and urging coordination with federal Border Patrol.
The debate is sharpened by the federal operations and state-level cooperation restrictions described in the account. Cuellar says ICE should remain funded, while insisting on guardrails; Democratic Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa has criticized ICE tactics but, Cuellar said, has not called for defunding the agency. His coming role will put that balance directly into the funding process.
Cuellar Rejects Progressive Effort to Defund Border Enforcement
Rep. Henry Cuellar is pushing back against a progressive drive to abolish or defund ICE, arguing that Democrats cannot secure the border by weakening immigration enforcement. The Texas border-district lawmaker is poised to chair the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, giving him influence over the agency’s funding.
Cuellar has said Democrats should not return to the Biden administration’s border approach, which he judged unsuccessful. He also agreed that the administration failed to secure the border. His stance contrasts with calls from progressive Democrats to abolish ICE, while rejecting the idea that the agency should operate without safeguards or oversight.
Cuellar supported a January homeland security bill allocating billions in ICE funding, but later opposed a Republican-backed $70 billion enforcement package over oversight concerns. He criticized Abbott’s Operation Lone Star, saying Texas should work with federal Border Patrol rather than allow state-federal tensions to impede coordination. He said local sheriffs should have a limited role, despite Texas requirements that most county sheriffs seek federal cooperation agreements.
The dispute reflects competing approaches within the Democratic Party: Cuellar argues for continued enforcement and border security, while critics of ICE have objected to its tactics and sought limits on cooperation. Cuellar has also criticized ICE actions involving people without criminal records. He says the agency should remain funded, with guardrails, and is positioned to shape that debate in Congress.
Reported by Fox News, The Washington Examiner.
