NICE President Hits Sanctuary Cities’ ‘Middle Finger’ to White House, Calls for More Funding for ICE Detention and GPS Tracking

RJ Hauman, president of the National Immigration Center for Enforcement (NICE), testified before a House subcommittee on Wednesday, telling lawmakers that “sanctuary” policies put lawful Americans in danger from criminal illegal immigrants – calling for Congress to provide more funding for ICE detention and GPS tracking, and accusing sanctuary lawmakers of showing the “middle finger” to the White House.

Hauman testified before the House Judiciary Committee’s subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security and Enforcement. The hearing, “Sanctuary Jurisdictions: Magnet for Migrants, Cover for Criminals,” examined how sanctuary jurisdictions protect illegal aliens rather than American citizens and legal immigrants.

“It sounds noble doesn’t it?” Hauman said of sanctuary cities. “A refuge, but for whom? Not our sons and daughters, they’re left vulnerable due to them, our communities are then torn apart. These sanctuaries shield the lawless, not the lawful.”

Hauman made it clear that combating the threat posed by sanctuary cities includes more funding for ICE, so that arrests and mass deportations can take place. That includes funding not only for detention beds, but also for electronic monitoring of those not able to be detained. When beds are full, as they are currently, electronic monitoring allows for the supervision of aliens regardless of where they are located.

“It’s time for Congress to wake up, shift into President Trumps’ gear and act decisively. End sanctuary cities for good and launch mass deportations now,” he said. “Congress needs to act, give ICE the resources to act in accordance with the law, deliver on the electoral mandate and secure American communities.”

Hauman drew attention to the ongoing battle in Newark, where sanctuary city Mayor Ras Baraka has been attempting to thwart the reopening of the Delaney Hall immigration processing center, which would expand the underfunded ICE’s bed space by 1,000 beds at a time when it is already well above capacity.

“You have a mayor, Ras Baraka, who is even refusing to allow a detention facility of 1,000 beds to open…They don’t only want to not comply with detainers, they don’t want to detain even in critical urban areas that are key hubs for removal,” Hauman said.

He stressed the danger to not only American civilians, but also ICE agents, when ICE is ignored and illegal aliens are not detained.

“Every enforcement operation that happens out there is at risk for them, 98% of illegal aliens are currently roaming free, we can’t even track them with a monitoring device, or they’re not even in our custody, they’re just going out into the abyss and trying to find these people and putting their lives at risk. It’s dangerous.”

Hauman said that the way for Congress and the federal government to push back against the sanctuary movement is to fund ICE, including detention and electronic monitoring of illegal immigrants. He also accused the far-left movement of showing a “middle finger” to the Trump White House.

“They want to make in each jurisdiction a flagrant abuse, with a middle finger to the White House, when it comes to enforcing our law. They’re dismantling detention, immigration enforcement, and when it comes down to it these are preventable crimes,” he said. “We’re going to keep seeing them and until adequate funding is provided to President Trump and ICE to do mass deportations and everything, it’s going to be on our hands too.”