Senate hearing on Democrats' war on immigration enforcement

[0:05] groups continue to incite violent protests and impede the enforcement of our immigration laws. [0:12] We will examine how groups, primarily on the left and even elected officials at the federal, [0:18] state and local level, continue to vilify immigration enforcement officials who are [0:25] simply carrying out their duties required under the law. We'll discuss how the mainstream media [0:44] gaslights the public about the true scope of criminal alien activity in the United States. [0:51] But first, let me take a moment to remind everyone how we got to this point. [0:56] President Biden invited millions of unvetted illegal aliens into the United States. [1:02] These included hundreds of thousands of criminal aliens, violent gang members, [1:07] and even individuals on the terror watch list. And where did these aliens go? [1:13] They went to neighborhoods in major cities across the United States. [1:17] These criminal aliens took up residence in states, counties, and cities that call themselves sanctuary [1:24] cities like Los Angeles, Portland, and Chicago. Sadly, many of these communities have suffered [1:31] for decades under the weight of failed policing mandates. The influx of millions of illegal aliens [1:38] exacerbated the failure of these policies, resulting in skyrocketing crime. Local residents have begged [1:45] their elected leaders to reverse course and to address rising crime, but to no avail. [1:51] To add insult to injury, imagine their surprise when they learned that these [1:56] Biden-error legal-illegal aliens were prioritized for all types of public services, [2:02] including housing, schooling, and medical care funded by their tax dollars. [2:10] In some cities, police departments were hamstrung by budget cuts in order to prioritize spending on [2:16] illegal immigrants. Thankfully, President Trump has listened to these concerns and fulfilled [2:21] one of his most important campaign promises to secure the border and remove illegal aliens from [2:28] the United States. Aggressive immigration enforcement is not unprecedented, nor is it a particularly [2:35] partisan issue. The reality is that President Obama, who was once praised for unifying the country, [2:42] deported more than two and a half million illegal aliens, earning him the title the deporter-in-chief [2:50] at some point. But ever since President Trump was sworn into office and began prioritizing immigration [2:56] enforcement, assaults and attacks on immigration agents and officers have skyrocketed. These immigration [3:05] officers are law enforcement officers that are doing what their country has asked them to do, [3:11] which is to enforce our laws, just like every other law enforcement officer. They carry out their sworn [3:17] duties to uphold the law and arrest those who violated our laws. And make no mistake, we're talking [3:24] about the arrests of criminal aliens who have committed some of the most heinous crimes. Murder, rape, [3:31] sexual abuse and molestation of children, aggravated robbery and assault, kidnapping, human smuggling, [3:37] theft and even acts of terrorism. But you don't have to take my word for it. DHS has published dozens [3:45] of press releases highlighting the criminal aliens whom ICE and CBP have apprehended. These criminal [3:52] aliens were hiding in the United States, some for years, and were allowed to continue terrorizing American [3:59] communities. DHS has reported that currently more than 415,000 illegal aliens in the United States [4:10] already have criminal convictions. 415,000. Of that number, nearly 400,000 aren't even detained. [4:20] They're still out there somewhere in our neighborhoods wreaking havoc. There is unfortunately [4:25] a lot of misinformation spread about among the American public by the news media and the [4:34] social media, especially regarding the current law laws that authorize our immigration enforcement [4:41] officers and what they are allowed to do and what they're required to do and why they have to go [4:47] into these communities to arrest illegal aliens, especially in so-called sanctuary cities. [4:54] Immigration enforcement officers are well trained and many with years of experience. The only reason that [5:00] ICE and CBP must go out in our streets and seek out and arrest criminal aliens is because sanctuary cities [5:10] simply refuse to cooperate with law enforcement and allow them to be transferred directly from jail [5:16] if detained. According to the Center for Immigration Studies, there are currently 12 sanctuary states [5:24] and more than 200 sanctuary cities and counties across the United States. Many of them have passed laws [5:32] that prevent their police department from cooperating with immigration enforcement or sharing information [5:38] about detained or incarcerated aliens or honoring DHS detainers. Consequently, criminal aliens are often [5:48] released back into their communities inevitably to reoffend rather than being detained before being [5:55] placed into custody. This practice is not only defies common sense, but it makes the role of immigration [6:04] enforcement officers much more difficult and in the end more painful for these communities. The mainstream media [6:15] unfortunately has shown no willingness to educate the public. Instead of reporting these realities truthfully, [6:24] mainstream media outlets like CNN, MSNBC, and ABC have ignored the real harm that these criminal aliens [6:32] have caused in these communities and instead directed their ire toward law enforcement. I want to be sure, [6:38] however, to praise those reporters who do their job honestly, who called out false statements when they see [6:46] them on social media or otherwise. That is also an important function of the media and it does not go unnoticed. [6:55] Here's one example where Bill Malugian of Fox News points out a social media post depicting an infant with handcuffs [7:08] on as false, which of course comes from TikTok. TikTok is owned by the Chinese government in part and [7:20] operates under the rules set by the Chinese Communist Party and is famous for their propaganda and disinformation [7:27] efforts. But here's an example of how TikTok is sowing dissension among Americans by suggesting somehow that [7:35] U.S. law enforcement officials are doing things like detaining an infant and it looks like even [7:42] putting them in handcuffs, which is obviously a false, false statement, false depiction. We also know that [7:52] some of our democratic colleagues have used incendiary rhetoric to fan the flames of public protests [7:58] that are anything but mostly peaceful. The result has been widespread assaults on our law enforcement [8:06] officers. Protesters and criminal aliens have physically attacked officers. Officers have been pepper [8:13] sprayed, choked, punched, or even injured to the point of hospitalization. Protesters have made violent [8:21] threats against ICE officers, comparing them to fascists and Nazis, inciting more violence against immigration [8:28] officers who are again simply doing the job that Congress has asked them to do. They are enforcing federal [8:35] laws. They've rammed officers with vehicles, thrown tear gas, smoke grenades, rocks, bottles, and even punched [8:44] and shot at our ICE officers. Left-wing protesters have laid down in the road in an attempt to prevent [8:52] vehicles from belonging to law enforcement from entering or leaving detention facilities and even slash the [8:59] tires on government vehicle cars, all to prevent ICE and CBP from doing their jobs. [9:07] These groups have also interfered with the capture of illegal aliens, including facilitating the escape [9:13] of a convicted child rapist and an alien convicted for narcotics and weapons possession. Some of these [9:20] protesters are outright lunatics and I don't use this word lightly. Anyone watching the news has seen [9:28] protesters from every corner of the radical's left base. We've seen everything from straight-up thugs committing [9:36] physical violence to activists dressed as dinosaurs and rabbits and in some costumes that I won't even [9:44] hazard a guess as to what they are trying to represent. We've even some some seen some dancing [9:51] grandmas trying to stop enforcement of our immigration laws one Jane Fonda dance move at a time. [9:59] Well suffice it to say some of these activists have become so divorced from reality as to be characterized [10:23] accurately as unhinged. But when you give protesters information about who is being targeted and why [10:29] suddenly they see the wisdom of this action. Hey y'all be careful they're arresting people at work here. [10:39] Hard-working Americans who build you know the ones who do all your landscaping work on your cars fix all [10:44] your stuff they're coming out here taking them all they're coming out here just taking everybody [10:49] at work be careful everybody don't go to work today. Where do you work child sex crap? Oh you do? [10:55] Never mind weirdo! Never mind weirdo! Many of us look to law enforcement officers for protection [11:06] in cases of robbery, burglary, or assault. Why can't we extend the same level of respect to law [11:13] enforcement officers who carry out our other laws that congress has passed like our immigration laws. [11:18] The left sometimes calls themselves the party of the people but they don't seem to have much regard [11:26] for their fellow man and woman when they engage in tactics designed to impede ICE and CBP from [11:33] getting criminal aliens off our streets and out of the United States. Why is the radical left so intent [11:40] on protecting illegal aliens over U.S. citizens who are suffering the consequences of violent crime? [11:46] To me that is the most important question that remains unanswered. I now recognize Senator Padilla the [11:54] ranking member. Good afternoon. Thank you Mr. Chairman. Let me first say that violence against [12:04] law enforcement is never okay. I speak for all my democratic colleagues in the committee and the [12:12] Senate for that matter in saying so violence against law enforcement is never okay and I will [12:17] continue to emphasize that as we have in the past we will today and in the future if for no other reason [12:24] because many of our colleagues on the other side of the aisle suggest and accuse Democrats of believing [12:30] otherwise. But for today's hearing let me begin with a very simple question. Why are we here? Are we here [12:41] truly to conduct oversight and find ways to actually improve the situation and public safety in our [12:47] communities or are we simply here to throw more fuel on the political fire? Today's hearing title tells us all we [12:56] need to know. Quote, the radical left's crusade against immigration enforcement. That doesn't exactly [13:04] set the stage for a productive serious conversation about how we both protect law enforcement officials [13:12] and improve public safety. It's the title of the next exercise in republican political theater. That's [13:21] really what's happening here. So let me once again say that violence against law enforcement is never [13:28] okay. But I refuse to sit back as this committee attempts to use or condone the use of law [13:36] enforcement as a shield for abuses of power by this administration. If today's hearing was indeed a [13:44] serious effort to protect our law enforcement, we would have government witnesses testifying before us [13:51] today and fielding our questions as a committee. But that's not the case. If today's hearing was a serious [13:59] effort, those government witnesses would be providing facts and data behind the numbers that the [14:04] Department of Homeland Security so often cites to claim an increase in assaults on its officers and [14:11] agents. But even after repeated requests, months and months of requests from my office and from others to the [14:20] the Department of Homeland Security to back up their claims of a, is it 500 percent? Is it a thousand percent? [14:27] Now we're even hearing claims of up to eight thousand percent increase in assaults or death threats. [14:33] They've refused to provide them. Mr. Chairman, you're very well aware of this. You and I discussed this last [14:38] week. And as far as I can tell, they've even refused your requests for data and statistics. Why am I insisting [14:45] on this? Why am I making this point? Because that data is critical. Not only would it allow us to actually [14:53] verify their claims, but that data would be critical to informing our policy response. So no, today's [15:02] hearing is not a serious attempt to protect law enforcement. It's designed to fuel the propaganda [15:08] of the machine and encourage even more brutal immigration enforcement operations. It's designed [15:14] to cover up for the fact that after President Trump pledged to go after the worst of the worst, [15:20] this we do know from DHS statistics. Over 70 percent of those currently detained in ICE custody [15:27] have no criminal record. If they were simply focused on those truly dangerous violent criminals, [15:34] there would be no objection. There would be no debate. There would be no discussion. But the reality is [15:39] far from their claims. At the same time, what we are seeing every day is new acts of brutality and [15:46] misuse of force in communities across the country. But my guess is that today you won't be hearing [15:54] about the Department of Homeland Security's violent takedowns of peaceful, hardworking, long-term [16:01] immigrants who don't have that violent criminal record that the administration wants you to believe. [16:08] And I'm not just making this up. There's case after case including a deaf DACA recipient who had his [16:15] hands cuffed and his phone taken away so he couldn't communicate as he was shoved into the back of a car. [16:22] You won't hear about the journalists who are threatened and assaulted. Once so severely in New York, [16:28] they had to be hospitalized. You won't hear about the clergy being shot in the head with a pepper ball [16:35] or arrested for attempting to administer the sacrament of communion to the faithful at a detention facility. [16:44] And you won't hear about the 170 American citizens, there's probably more, but that's what's been [16:50] documented, caught up in these chaotic immigration raids. American citizens caught up in these raids. [17:00] Even as Secretary Noem lies and claims when she says that no American citizens have been detained, [17:08] every week we read new reports about another American who's had their neck kneeled on, their door [17:16] blown off or their windows smashed. And even a pregnant woman in Florida, a United States citizen, [17:24] who was thrown to the ground during an arrest and who later miscarried. This is happening [17:33] every day across the country. Masked agents have become so emboldened that even a Reagan-appointed [17:41] federal judge recently wrote to now, quote, in all our history, we have never tolerated an armed, [17:49] masked, secret police carrying on in this fashion, end quote. Now this administration ignores the [17:58] fundamental rights to due process every day as it carries out this authoritarian enforcement agenda, [18:05] and instead has replaced it with the idea that if you look or talk a certain way, that's enough [18:14] for you to be detained or even deported before you have a day in court. That's not just morally wrong, [18:23] it's an attack on our fundamental liberties and the rule of law in the United States of America. [18:30] But again, Republicans don't want to discuss any of this. Why? Out of fear of crossing the president [18:38] and his outrage machine? Americans have had enough. They're sick of masked agents disrespecting daycares, [18:47] schools and churches, disappearing loved ones and intimidating our communities. Americans are [18:53] demanding that we do something. So Mr. Chairman, it's clear to me that this hearing will not be a serious [19:00] or constructive conversation. And for that reason, I refuse to give oxygen to the fire of disinformation [19:07] and propaganda that this hearing was set up to ignite. And I refuse to be part of this charade. [19:15] Well, Senator Padilla, I think you say we're not discussing a lot of those items, but I think you just [19:22] raised a lot of interesting questions that I'd be happy to discuss and ask questions of the witnesses and [19:28] get their views. This is not necessarily the only hearing we're going to be having on this topic. [19:36] And I think given the fact that there is so much disinformation, it's important for us to get the facts [19:43] and not just rely on misinformation, which seems to be rampant. I'll proceed to introduce the witnesses. [19:53] The first is Sheriff Roy Boyd of Goliad County, Texas. Everybody who knows a little about Texas history [20:02] knows the importance of Goliad and the Texas Revolution. Goliad's in rural South Texas with a [20:09] population of around a thousand situated halfway between Houston and Laredo along US Highway 59. [20:17] Sheriff Boyd's been a peace officer for 31 years and retired from the Victoria Police Department and [20:22] Victoria Sheriff's Department before becoming the sheriff of Goliad County. Sheriff Boyd also worked [20:30] as one of the co-leaders on Texas's Operation Lone Star. Mia Cothell is an investigative journalist [20:41] at the Washington Examiner, tracking activist movements in the US and civil unrest across the country. [20:48] She closely monitors mobilization strategies, funding sources, and the ideologies driving political [20:55] violence. Her coverage on Antifa's operations has caught the attention of the White House [21:01] as the Trump administration seeks to dismantle far-left domestic terrorism networks. [21:07] Danielle Carter Walters is co-founder and vice president of Chicago Flips Red and a dedicated [21:15] political activist and community advocate. Chicago Flips Red is a grassroots initiative dedicated to [21:22] transforming the political landscape by prioritizing the needs of Chicago's communities and residents. [21:30] Ms. Carter Walters has been a vocal critic of the city's sanctuary policies and the misallocation of [21:38] public resources during the migrant crisis. In April 2025, Ms. Carter Walters testified before the US House [21:47] Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement about sanctuary cities, [21:54] where she urged federal and state leaders to end sanctuary policies and prioritize the need of [22:01] American citizens. So please rise, and I'll administer the oath. Raise your right hand. You swear to tell [22:14] the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth to help God. Thank you. Sheriff Boyd, why don't we start [22:23] with you, and if you take about five minutes or so to make an opening statement, and then I'm sure we'll have [22:29] some questions for you and the rest of the witnesses. Thank you, Senator. To the Honorable Chair and members [22:35] of the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, my name is Roy Boyd. I'm the sheriff of Goliad County, which is rural [22:42] South Texas County, about halfway between Laredo and Houston, as the Senator said. I'm here to discuss the [22:49] current situation with regards to law enforcement and the enforcement of the laws, and more specifically, [22:55] the implementation of the 287G task force model and the need to expand the program and change our [23:02] model of conducting law enforcement operations across the United States of America. Here is why [23:08] these efforts are important to the future of our nation and the safety of our citizens. While illegal [23:12] immigration has been a historical issue along the U.S.-Mexico border, this changed more than a decade ago [23:18] when the cartels seized control of the border regions of Mexico and changed their business [23:23] model to include smuggling of people. When this happened, the cartels began controlling who came [23:28] across the border and began torturing and killing anyone who attempted to violate their control by [23:34] crossing into the U.S. without paying the cartels. This control gave rise to a new way for the cartels to [23:40] conduct business throughout the United States and beyond. In Mexico, the federal government leases [23:46] territories to criminal organizations in what they refer to as the plaza system. The Mexican [23:52] government allows cartels to conduct limited smuggling and trafficking activities in exchange [23:57] for a monthly fee with any activity above and beyond requiring additional payments to government [24:03] officials as a tax on excess illicit commerce. The cartels have replicated this Mexican government's [24:11] program with geographic control throughout the United States. I witnessed this firsthand when I was the [24:18] chief deputy for Victoria County Sheriff's Office, which is next door to Goliad. The gulf cartel took [24:24] control of the cocaine trade in Victoria and surrounding counties. They then leased the sole distribution [24:30] rights for the dealing of pure cocaine to the Houston chapter of the Mexican mafia. The gulf cartel then sent out [24:36] people onto the streets to tell the other dealers that unless they were authorized distributors of pure [24:41] cocaine, they would have to cut their product by at least 50 percent with inert material. After operations [24:49] were underway, the cartel sent people back out on the streets to purchase cocaine from non-authorized [24:54] distributors for the purpose of testing the product for purity. If the cocaine was without inert product, [25:01] the dealer was given a warning about violating the cartel's control of the product within the plaza. [25:08] During this time, we began to receive word from local cocaine dealers that local cocaine dealers were [25:13] disappearing. Many families were not reporting their missing loved ones to the authorities out of fear of [25:19] retribution from the cartel and the Mexican mafia. In total, our contacts on the streets advised that at least [25:25] 10 drug dealers had refused to dilute their product and had been disappeared, never to be seen again. Only one family [25:32] went public and sought justice for their son. We never found him or discovered what became of him or his [25:38] remains. The other aspect of this new business model is that cartels began using illegal aliens [25:44] smuggled into the United States as part of their logistic workforce. When people are smuggled into [25:50] the U.S., they must pay a fee to the cartels in order to gain safe passage. In our area, most illegal aliens [25:56] are smuggled into Houston for transport across the eastern half of the United States. Once in Houston, [26:01] they are given the final amount that they owe the cartels and their contractors for being here. From there, [26:07] the illegal aliens end up in various forms of indentured servitude across our nation. [26:12] However, as part of that obligation of the cartels, these people have to be willing to provide labor [26:17] and other services to pay off their final debt. We've interviewed many illegal aliens who have been [26:23] smuggled into Texas during our investigations. What we found is that some will pay off the debt with [26:29] money over a period of 8 to 13 years. Some will pay off the debt by smuggling other illegal aliens or drugs [26:35] into the United States. Some will move illegal aliens and drugs from one area of the interior to another. [26:46] Others will be placed into forced prostitution or will be called upon to provide material support [26:51] in the unloading or moving of drugs and in the areas in which they reside. If you think these [26:56] indentured people can just decide not to cooperate once they are here, that is not the case. The cartels [27:03] have a vast intelligence network and keep records of the people they smuggle to include family member [27:08] information. I've had illegal aliens involved in criminal activity tell me that they had no choice [27:14] but to commit criminal acts in order to prevent their family members from being placed into bondage [27:19] and doing unspeakable acts in their home countries. What this means is that millions of illegal aliens now [27:25] residing in the United States are part of the logistical support operations for illicit cartel [27:31] activities throughout our country. If our goal is to dismantle cartel operations in the United States, [27:39] we will never be able to do so unless we deny them the logistical capacity to conduct business [27:46] in a manner that generates an acceptable stream of revenue to be moved from the United States into [27:52] their home countries. In order to take the initiative in what can only be deemed as asymmetrical warfare [27:59] against the cartels and their business partners, law enforcement must change their mindset and must [28:04] change their methodology. We must look at what we have been doing in the past and ask if the billions [28:09] of dollars we have spent are accomplishing the primary goals of the missions of the programs implemented. [28:15] In most cases, I will speculate that with an honest assessment, we will find that most of the federal [28:20] dollars being pumped into law enforcement programs is remaining in urban areas where expense versus [28:25] return is not in balance. According to ice.gov, as of November 14, 2025, there were 1,167 local and state [28:36] law enforcement agencies in 40 states that had signed memorandums of agreement for the at least one of the [28:44] 287 programs. Only 605 of those agreements are for the participation of the task force model, [28:52] which is a model that allows local and state law enforcement to conduct field immigration enforcement [28:58] under the supervision of ICE. With more than 18,000 local law enforcement agencies in the U.S., [29:05] 605 agencies assisting ICE in the field is insufficient to hinder the profit margin of the cartels. If we are to [29:16] succeed in this monumental task, this effort of defeating the cartels, we must restructure [29:21] our law enforcement efforts. We must disregard those who stand in the way of change, ignore the [29:28] anti-American media outlets working against the interests of Americans, and create a new chain of [29:35] command and organizational structure that allows for the synergy throughout full spectrum of law enforcement [29:42] and streamlines the functionality in a manner that demands results and accountability while ensuring [29:47] funds are being utilized in accordance with their intended purpose. This purpose must be to defund and [29:53] prosecute organized criminal activity throughout America, which will not happen if we fail to enforce [30:01] our immigration laws and deport those who have violated our sovereignty and have placed themselves at the [30:07] disposal of organizations who victimize our citizens. The presence of Mexican cartels in the United States [30:14] has changed how domestic criminal organizations function. It has created a negative impact that is [30:21] becoming more pervasive day by day. Street gangs, motorcycle gangs, and other domestic criminal organizations [30:29] have all been relegated to the status of mere contractors and subcontractors for the cartels. As such, [30:37] they are beholden to act as they are commanded by their masters. Furthermore, hostile foreign governments [30:43] and organizations have joined to work alongside cartels in an effort to undermine the safety and security of the United States [30:51] from within. As a law enforcement professional who has witnessed the evolution of the influence of [30:58] foreign organized crime in the United States, I fear that if we fail to act swiftly and with purpose, [31:03] we shall find ourselves on the path that mirrors the never-ending violence and instability found in [31:09] Mexico. In the words of Peter Rangel, the general of the white Russian army in 1919 fighting the Bolsheviks, [31:17] we must have the courage to see things as they are, to look at the situation squarely in the face and be [31:22] ready for fresh ordeals. Thank you for your time and your consideration. Ms. Carter Walters, if you'd proceed [31:31] with your opening statement, please. Good afternoon, Chairman and members of the subcommittee. My name [31:40] is Danielle Carter Walters, Vice President of Chicago Flips Red. Thank you to President Donald J. Trump for [31:52] giving regular citizens like me the courage to speak up and thank you to this subcommittee for letting me [32:03] share what is really happening in our city. Chicago Flips Red support the work the president is doing and we [32:14] fight for people of Chicago every day. We have also been targeted for doing what's right. Our founder, [32:27] Zoe Lee, and our advisor, Jessica Jackson, were attacked after speaking out about stolen property [32:37] and poor neighborhoods. And I recently faced pushback in Cook County Court for trying to protect my [32:47] community. Even with all of this, we stand with the men and women of ICE. Officers who risked their lives [32:58] daily. These officers get no help from Governor Prisker or Mayor Brandon Johnson. ICE has found dangerous [33:10] criminals in Chicago, violent felons, child traffickers, drug smugglers, and cartel [33:19] members all hiding under sanctuary city protection. ICE has stopped fentanyl shipments, broken up traffic [33:31] trafficking groups, and removed criminals who were hurting our neighborhoods. This work is especially [33:40] needed in the black communities that are still recovering from the crack in the AIDS crisis of 1980s [33:50] and from the damage caused by the 94 crime bill orchestrated by Jim Crow, Joe Biden, and put into law by Bill [34:01] Clinton. But instead of helping ICE, our state and city leaders block them. They refuse to share information, ignore [34:13] them, according to the law of justice, and the black detainers and even threaten to arrest federal officers for just doing their jobs. [34:22] Some judges have also joined in. They have made unfair rulings meant to scare ICE agents. One of the worst examples [34:33] was when a judge ordered Agent Greg Bravino to report to court every day as if he were [34:41] a criminal. That was not justice, it was political gains backed by the fake news media. While this [34:51] is happening, Mayor Johnson, Governor Prisker are spending hundreds of millions of dollars [34:59] on illegal aliens. While regular Chicagoans struggle, schools are crowded, crime keep rising, [35:10] and families can't afford food or rent. Yet our leaders still put illegal aliens first. [35:20] Over 56,000 illegal aliens are living in Chicago homes, while our veterans and homeless sleep [35:30] outside. Cartel gangs like MS-13, Trendiagua now have presence in our city. Fentanyl, guns, [35:43] and human trafficking are flowing through neighborhoods that used to be filled with working families. [35:51] ICE tries to stop this, but the judges, the Illinois Attorney General, the Chicago's Teachers Union, [36:01] certain clergy members, the mayor, and the governor blocked them every step of the way. This is not [36:10] compassion, this is failure. This is a betrayal of the people they were elected to protect. [36:19] Chicago is broke. We're in a billion dollar deficit, overpriced contracts, and shrinking middle class. [36:30] Mayor Johnson blames the government in Washington. But the truth is simple. Sanctuary policies have brought [36:39] chaos and corruption to our city. So we, the people of Chicago, we demand this. A federal review of how [36:51] Illinois blocks ICE from doing their job. A criminal investigation into judges who target ICE officers [37:01] unfairly. A full check of all the money spent by state and the city on migrant programs. Police, Cook County, [37:13] and federal agencies working together again with ICE and to the sanctuary city policies that put our safety [37:24] at risk. Sanctuary should mean safety for Americans. In Chicago, it now means giving up our rights and our [37:36] security to every leader still defending these harmful policies. Your time of pretending to serve the [37:46] people is over. We will speak up, we will stand up, and we will not let corruption decide the future of our [37:59] city. We will take our city and state back because it's for we, the people. Thank you. [38:07] Thank you. Ms. Cathel. [38:09] My name is Mia Cathel. I am an investigative journalist at the Washington Examiner. [38:17] I've been closely covering civil unrest in the U.S. since the 2020 racial justice riots. Members of the [38:23] subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to appear here before you today to testify about this [38:29] important issue. When the uprisings against ICE erupted on the west coast in June, we saw uniform [38:35] signage, tactical gear, and boots on the ground activists deployed to Los Angeles, the epicenter of [38:42] the unrest, almost instantaneously. These certainly were not spontaneous riots. They were well-coordinated [38:49] and, in fact, well-funded. What we uncovered was an orchestrated operation, and those at the forefront [38:55] of the anti-ICE resistance have received ample funding. Chief among them is the Coalition for [39:00] Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, or CHERLA for short. CHERLA, a 501c3 nonprofit, is part of a [39:08] sprawling anti-ICE activist network in the Los Angeles area, serving as rapid response to deportation [39:15] sightings. CHERLA instructs its followers via Blue Sky to report ICE encounters to the Los Angeles Rapid [39:22] Response Network, abbreviated Lauren. CHERLA co-founded Lauren in late January with the expressed intent [39:30] to counter the incoming Trump administration's immigration policies. Here's how it works. [39:35] In response to reports of immigration enforcement called in over its hotline, Lauren sends out [39:41] cells comprised of immigration lawyers, legal observers, and activist organizers in order to [39:48] mobilize counter efforts against ICE. This rapid response model is replicated elsewhere across the [39:54] country using crowdsourced surveillance software, some quite sophisticated, or simply social media to [40:01] track ICE activity in the region and alert activists, as well as illegal immigrants to nearby ICE agents. [40:08] CHERLA has acquired its funding from federal and state sources. According to CHERLA's tax filing from fiscal [40:14] 2023, the group reported receiving about $34 million in government grants. In its capacity as a legal services [40:22] provider, CHERLA helps illegal immigrants, including those convicted of crimes, avoid deportation. Grant records [40:29] show that Homeland Security, the very agency CHERLA's protesting, has awarded the anti-deportation group [40:37] several six-figure grants since 2014 as part of an immigration aid program that financially supports [40:43] organizations actively working to remove barriers to naturalization. CHERLA has also received generous [40:50] taxpayer funding from the state of California. In 2023, the state's Department of Social Services awarded CHERLA [40:57] about $3 million for an initiative providing free legal services to immigrants, such as application [41:04] assistance and cases seeking immigration remedies, that is, deportation relief. In 2022, CHERLA received [41:12] $1.37 million from California Social Services Department, specifically to provide pro bono defense [41:19] services and removal proceedings. CHERLA's deportation team, nicknamed Warriors for Justice, was bankrolled by the [41:27] Los Angeles Justice Fund, a public-private partnership between liberal grant-making foundations, the City of Los Angeles [41:34] and Los Angeles County. These grantees formed a removal defense pipeline in the county. Another far-left agitator group [41:44] fomenting anti-ice unrest is the Foreign-Funded Party for Socialism and Liberation, whose chapters mass mobilize their forces in major U.S. cities, [41:53] many of them so-called sanctuaries or safe havens welcoming illegal immigration. At the time of the Los Angeles riots, PSL activated its [42:03] followers from all corners of the country to take to the streets, rise up in solidarity, stage parallel protests, and force ICE out of L.A., a rallying cry that has since been [42:15] repurposed for cities targeted by federal immigration authorities. PSL's San Antonio arm explained to local press at the time, [42:25] that the more cities that oppose ICE operations through these pressure campaigns, the more difficult a federal crackdown becomes. PSL chapters, such as the ones operating in Washington D.C. and Milwaukee, continue to convene ICE out rallies to stop the raids. [42:41] Most recently, PSL led an emergency march in Charlotte, where activists were seen waving Mexican flags to drive out Border Patrol and, quote, [42:51] defeat the deportation machine. PSL Charlotte began circulating call-to-action material days before Border Patrol made landfall in North Carolina. A coalition of local and national organizations sponsored the protest, including 5051, one of the organizers behind the nationwide No Kings movement. Left unchecked, [43:12] these powerful actors work in tandem to advance agendas harmful to the safety and security of the nation. Their shared objective is to obstruct the enforcement of U.S. [43:22] immigration law legislation that Congress enacted. Simply put, the men and women of ICE are law enforcement officers tasked with carrying out their [43:31] congressionally mandated duties. They are under increasing threat of targeted attacks and hostile demonstrations that often devolve into violent clashes. At this rate, I fear more political violence is to come unless federal officers take further steps to protect our federal officers. Thank you. [43:50] Thank you. Thank you very much. We'll have a round of questions and looks like our Democratic colleagues are boycotting the hearing. So Senator Moody and I will have a chance to ask questions we'd like. And I think there's a lot of lot to cover. First of all, Sheriff Boyd, I know you were very active as a leader of Operation Lone Star in Texas. Would you describe what that what that is? [44:18] So in the state of Texas, you have Operation Lone Star, which is a state initiated program that helps to to focus state law enforcement to go out and to conduct anti smuggling operations and to help secure the border in Texas to provide assistance to our Border Patrol. And that's been going on since about 2021. But then you have the Operation Lone Star Grant, which is a grant from the state of Texas that provides funds for [44:49] funding to local agencies such as ourself in order to pay for overtime and equipment needed to go out and combat transnational criminal activity across the state of Texas. And then what we have formed is the Operation Lone Star Task Force, which is now at 61 agencies across the state of Texas. [45:06] And we come together and we work in unison with our partners at ICE Border Patrol, Homeland Security, Texas Department of Public Safety and Texas Parks Wildlife and of course, the Texas Department of Agriculture under Commissioner Sid Miller. [45:21] And we go out and we help conduct enforcement operations to help secure Texas against the criminal predations of foreign entities. [45:29] Well, Sheriff, can you explain for people who are listening why if this is these are federal immigration laws that are being violated by people illegally entering the country? Why is it necessary for local and state law enforcement to work alongside of Customs and Border Protection, the Border Patrol and ICE to deal with this problem? [45:56] Just to give you a little bit of perspective. So during the first Trump administration, the Goliad County Sheriff's Office on average arrested 77 people a year. In 2021, we arrested 252. We thought that was a phenomenal number. [46:14] How far are you from the border now for the 180 miles? OK, halfway between Laredo and Houston. OK, so from there, by 2024, we arrested 502 people. [46:25] It climbed every single year. It now is on the path declining since the second Trump administration has come in. [46:33] But the problem is that we have allowed tens of millions of people to come into this country illegally and they are beholden to the cartels and they are moving around. [46:42] And there's no way for our federal partners to be able to tackle this monumental problem without the assistance of local and state law enforcement. [46:51] And as as a law enforcement official, it is my duty to stand up and make sure that the citizens of my community and my safer state. [47:00] And as part of that, I am there to help the federal partners that we have to achieve the goals given to them by the duly elected administration under President Trump. [47:09] And of course, that job's even harder when the federal government's policy is basically not to enforce immigration laws. Correct? [47:19] That was exactly why we had the problem under the Biden administration in the first place, because the laws were not being enforced. [47:25] And so we were being overrun by transnational criminal activity being directed by the cartels. [47:31] I think some people who don't live in Texas or don't understand the nature of the border thought that this wave of folks from Mexico and Central America and around the world would be welcomed with open arms by local border communities, which are overwhelmingly Hispanic. [47:54] Can you explain what your experience has been? [47:57] What the reality is, is those folks do not come across and stay in those border communities. [48:02] Yes, the border communities were we're not happy with this massive surge of criminality coming across the Rio Grande or across the border and other areas. [48:11] But what you'll find is those individuals were being moved in by the cartels. [48:16] They when they got here, they're not free to go. They're indentured servants. [48:19] They go where they've been assigned to go to. And those individuals would come up and in our area go to Houston for distribution all across the eastern half of the United States. [48:29] Same as the cartel does with drugs they did with people and they moved them all throughout the U.S. [48:34] And so it wasn't a it's not so much a border problem, which is part of the problem we've had is describing it as a border problem. [48:42] The real problem is it's now a problem for the entirety of the United States of America, thanks to the tens of millions of people allowed to come across under the previous administration. [48:51] So is it fair to say this is a problem that is not limited to the border, but extends throughout the country? [48:57] This is a national security issue of the highest level, sir. And it is coast to coast, border to border. [49:04] So Ms. Carter-Walters, we're going to get to her in a minute and Ms. Cathel because there's a lot of questions I want to ask. [49:13] I'm sure Senator Moody does as well. But one of the things you talked about or that was mentioned is sanctuary, [49:20] so-called sanctuary cities don't cooperate with federal law enforcement officials. [49:25] And my understanding is the Department of Homeland Security will issue a detainer on illegal aliens in the Goliad County Jail [49:35] or any other jail. And in those jurisdictions where they do cooperate with federal law enforcement officials, [49:43] the transfer of those individuals can occur there in the jail, and ICE isn't relegated to raiding populations in other places. [49:55] It can happen on a much more orderly way. But you mentioned the 287 agreement. Could you describe that further? [50:04] So under the 287 program, which provides limited federal authority to local law enforcement after we've received our training on it, [50:13] you have three different programs. You have the jail enforcement model, which is that allows us, [50:18] if we arrest somebody on a state offense and they come into the jail, that provides somebody who has been trained access to the database in our jail [50:26] to find out if that person who's already in jail is in this country legally or illegally. [50:32] And there's a system we go through and ICE verifies everything. [50:35] The next program, which is what you were talking about, was the warrant service model. [50:41] It's a warrant service officer model, which may sound like you're going out and knocking on doors, but that's not the case. [50:46] What it does is it grants those who are trained in the jail the authorization to transfer somebody who's in jail on state custody from state to federal custody at the request of ICE. [50:58] It also allows us to transport them from a facility that is not a contract facility for incarceration to another jurisdiction that is a contract facility for incarceration for federal crimes. [51:12] The last program is the task force model program. And what that does is that allows us, my deputies in the field, myself included, to go out. [51:21] And when we're conducting our business and we come across somebody that we believe is in this country without authorization, [51:27] gives us the ability to contact ICE to go through a verification process. [51:32] ICE then tells us, yes, you are correct. That individual is in the country illegally, gives us the authorization to detain them. [51:41] We take them and then we get them transported to a federally approved contracted facility for them to be housed at before they move on to where they're going to have their deportation hearing. [51:52] So in the absence of cooperation by the local or state jurisdiction to transfer those prisoners from state or local government custody to the federal government, [52:06] are those individuals simply just released into the community? [52:10] You're absolutely correct, Senator. In those jurisdictions, which we refer to as sanctuary jurisdictions, those individuals then once they make bond on their state charge, [52:19] they're going to be allowed to return back out onto the streets within that community. [52:24] If you're not part of the task force model, may stop you for not having, you know, for having a violation of traffic enforcement. [52:31] And just because you're in this country illegally, you'd still get released and be driving around on the streets of America, even though you're not supposed to be here. [52:39] Thank you, Senator Moody. [52:41] Thank you, Senator Cornyn, and thank you for holding this hearing. [52:46] I think one of the biggest mistakes we could make right now in the history of our country is to not examine this pattern of completely ignoring our laws under one administration. [52:58] And in fact, not only emboldening and permitting, in fact, funding anarchist behavior under one administration. [53:07] And then when an administration comes in to try to right the ship, restore the country, repair the damage, [53:17] we get behavior that is not only obstructionist, subversive, but illegal, all in the name of what? [53:28] For the life of me, if we want to ensure the devolution of our free state, our free nation, a nation under a rule of law, this is the quickest way to do it. [53:41] And shockingly, we have not only funded and permitted this type of behavior, we now have lawmakers in Congress, senators, complicit in this, advocating it. [54:01] As of yesterday, they were putting out a video encouraging government officials to ignore orders. [54:07] Our enemies, our adversaries across this world are laughing at what is happening right now. [54:15] And not only are they doing this and encouraging the behavior, they are obstructing us and trying to fix this every step of the way. [54:27] It's not just happening in our cities. They just shut down the government for 43 days. [54:32] Shut it down. And at what point are Americans going to catch on and understand that these are not lawmakers of yore. [54:44] These are people that are here that do not, in any way, shape or form, want our country to continue as the country it was founded to be 250 years ago. [54:55] A nation under a rule of law made by the people, the people's law. [55:01] And every time they're ordering a government official to ignore it, ignore orders, they're telling them, [55:07] ignore those that were elected by the people, ignore the law of the people. [55:11] And so somebody in this place has to call that out because that is the quickest way to lose this nation. [55:21] And I want to say thank you for being here today and testifying. [55:25] We have a law enforcement officer that was on the front lines and saw I was the attorney general of Florida. [55:31] And when the sheriffs came to me and said, the Biden administration is telling us to release people here illegally that are in our jails. [55:39] They've committed crimes. And instead of taking them from us, as they are required to do under the law and deporting them back to their home countries so that they can't continue to victimize Americans. [55:50] They are telling us to release serious felony offenders back into the communities. [55:56] And so they had to because Biden was not following the law. [56:01] And that happened time and time again. Drug traffickers, burglars, people. [56:08] And did it shock the nation when we kept seeing crimes being committed? [56:12] If they were paying attention, it shouldn't have. [56:15] Because the sheriffs and law enforcement officers around this nation were being told by the Biden administration to push them back into our communities. [56:23] Let me tell you another thing that I had to file suit on to get information when we found out. [56:28] Historically, when we picked up people internationally that were trafficking drugs, killing Americans, when they were brought to our country to be prosecuted and put in prison for that, [56:39] as soon as they served that sentence, they were deported because they were picked up in international places, because they were drug traffickers. [56:47] Who would have ever released them into our country when their only skill is drug trafficking in the middle of a drug crisis? [56:54] Oh, no. The Biden administration did. [56:58] They started taking federal prisoners in federal prisons for drug trafficking here illegally. [57:06] And instead of deporting them when their sentences were over, they released them back into your communities in America. [57:12] And their only skill was pushing drugs into your communities. That's their skill. [57:16] So thank you for testifying as what was happening. [57:22] Now we have agents being directed, rightfully so, by this administration to go into communities and arrest those people that are here illegally that have been committed crimes. [57:32] Many that were forced to be released by the Biden administration. And this is what we get. This is what we get. [57:41] People threatening, harassing, victimizing law enforcement, trying to go out and arrest those people that the Biden administration pushed into your communities. [57:52] And it wasn't just when they emptied the jails into your communities or they emptied the federal prisons into your communities. [57:59] They kept letting everyone just walk into our country, hundreds of thousands of people every month, and push them in, mass quotas to release into our country. [58:12] They called it their discretion to parole. No vetting done. They kept saying, there's nothing happening at the border. Our border is secure. [58:26] They testified to Congress under oath that our border was secure. And then they blamed Congress that they couldn't do anything else. [58:34] How long did it take for President Trump to shut down the border? They've released zero in the last six months. [58:40] Compare those same six months to the Biden administration. Hundreds of thousands of people pushed into our country, barely vetted. [58:48] This is what's happening when we're trying to make sure that our communities are safe. [58:53] That's why I'm introducing an act called the Halo Act, which would give these men and women who took a note to protect our communities and put American safety ahead of their own, [59:06] a buffer zone while they do their jobs. They should not have to tolerate this. If they tell someone to step away because they're trying to do their duties that we as the American people have asked them to do, [59:18] that we as the American people have asked them to do and put their lives on the line to do, they shouldn't have to deal with this. [59:24] And I hope every single one of my colleagues understands that without men and women that take that oath and serve on that very thin line, we don't have a country under a rule of law. [59:35] We asked them to do incredibly dangerous jobs. We could give them the space to do it. [59:42] I also believe there is absolutely no way that these groups should be funded with American tax dollars. [59:51] Talk about our adversaries laughing. It's like pouring acid on the fibers that bind us together as a nation that create that strength. [1:00:03] We're now going to take tax dollars and weaken that, going against the men and women trying to ensure safety, funding the people that are threatening and harassing them. [1:00:15] Ms. Cathal, I thank you for your testimony. And what you've said today is that American tax dollars have gone to the subversive network. Is that correct? [1:00:24] Ms. That's correct. [1:00:26] Ms. And Ms. Carter-Walters, what you're saying today, and thank you so much for being here today, [1:00:31] I have often said that the very people that the folks across the aisle profess to want to protect are the very ones they are hurting, [1:00:39] but they're insane undermining policies. And it's so refreshing to hear someone, a resident of a place where this is happening, [1:00:47] speak out and said, if they were looking out for Americans, the country that they swore to come in and represent the people, [1:00:54] and not the criminals, this country would look very different. Thank you for your bravery and your courage to come here today. [1:01:02] I don't know if that makes you any more popular in your community, but you're certainly representing what our founders imagined for a nation under a rule of law. [1:01:12] And I am grateful to you. Do you believe that federal funding should go to states and cities that are sanctuary cities that refuse to enforce the law [1:01:23] and refuse to work with federal law enforcement? [1:01:25] Ms. No, I don't believe that. And I just want to say, it's not surprising that we don't see no Democrats here. [1:01:32] Because that's what's happening in Chicago. They don't care about the American citizens or want to hear what we have to say. [1:01:39] So thank you for giving us a voice. This right here, what you see, is typical. [1:01:44] This is what we deal with in Chicago every day with the Democratic Party. [1:01:49] Ms. You know, I think when we watched under President Biden, the man-made disaster, the man-made emergency that was President Biden and his administration, [1:01:59] there was such damage, such recklessness, such incredible policies that were forced upon the American people that they didn't want. [1:02:08] And they didn't want in their communities. You had states declaring emergencies. [1:02:12] And what did that do when the sanctuary states declared emergencies because of what Biden did? [1:02:18] They got more federal funding. So you have my commitment. I'm going to work on legislation that would restrict and eliminate federal funding going to sanctuary cities and sanctuary states [1:02:28] that will not work with federal men and women of law enforcement. [1:02:32] These states that almost invite a criminal organization to base itself and take over cities and states like you're experiencing right now. [1:02:43] You have my commitment. I'm going to file legislation to make sure we put an end to that. [1:02:47] And let me just end, and I know, Chairman, I've gone way over my time, but let me just end by thanking you, Sheriff, for your service. [1:02:53] My husband is a career law enforcement officer. What they have had to endure over the last four years is unconscionable. [1:02:59] It's unconscionable that any person in Congress would allow that to happen. [1:03:03] I apologize to you. I thank you for your service. [1:03:07] And may your commitment to the rule of law and what you expect of this great nation from its leadership and what you expect in terms of its continued strength in the future for the next 250 years. [1:03:19] May your service continue to inspire other men and women to follow in your footsteps. [1:03:24] Thank you so much. [1:03:25] Thank you, Senator. [1:03:27] Senator Cruz. [1:03:28] Thank you, Mr. Chairman. [1:03:30] And I thank Senator Moody for her impassioned remarks with which I fully associate myself. [1:03:36] One year ago this month, the American people delivered a political earthquake, casting off the disaster of the Biden-Harris Democrat administration. [1:03:49] There were many aspects in which their policies were harmful, but none more so than four years of open borders, more than 12 million people coming illegally into this country. [1:04:02] Three million gotaways. [1:04:07] Gotaways, we know, are statistically much more likely to be criminals, to be murderers, to be rapists, to be child molesters, to be gang members, to be terrorists. [1:04:18] It was not accidental. [1:04:20] It was deliberate. [1:04:22] And every single day of the Biden presidency, Americans were victimized. [1:04:28] Americans were murdered. [1:04:29] Women were raped. [1:04:31] Children were brutalized by violent, criminal, illegal aliens that our federal government deliberately released into our communities. [1:04:40] Ms. Carter Walters, you pointed out, the city of Chicago has been savaged by these policies. [1:04:47] And I have to say, this hearing is a powerful illustration of the Democrats. [1:04:52] They are AWOL. [1:04:53] Every single chair on the Democrat side of the aisle is vacant. [1:04:59] And they are representing beautifully what Democrat policy was for four years protecting our communities. [1:05:07] My home state of Texas saw a greater invasion than any state in the country. [1:05:14] Now, a year ago, in January, President Trump came into office. [1:05:23] And the result was stunning. [1:05:27] This invasion ended not in a year, not in a six months, but overnight. [1:05:34] Illegal border crossings dropped more than 99 percent. [1:05:42] Instantaneously. [1:05:45] All three of us were at the State of the Union address where President Trump pointed out, he said, a year ago, Joe Biden said he could not secure the border without new legislation from Congress. [1:05:58] Now we've seen illegal border crossings drop 99 percent. [1:06:03] As Trump said, it turns out we didn't need new legislation. [1:06:05] We just needed a new president. [1:06:07] We needed a president who would follow the damn law and not release violent criminals into our communities. [1:06:18] Sheriff Boyd, it's good to see you. [1:06:20] You're the sheriff of Goliad County in South Texas. [1:06:23] You lead Operation Lone Star. [1:06:25] Tell us the difference between right now with an administration that follows the law and the preceding four years with an administration that released violent criminals in your county and every community across the country. [1:06:41] It's night and day, Senator. [1:06:45] The quality of life for the people of South Texas has drastically improved. [1:06:50] And you're absolutely right. [1:06:52] The numbers show it. [1:06:53] Turns out you didn't need new laws. [1:06:55] All you needed to do was have the right people in charge and free up Border Patrol to do what it is that they love to do. [1:07:01] And that's protect America. [1:07:03] And under the leadership of Border Patrol Chief Mike Banks, they have gone out and done exactly that. [1:07:08] And it has made a world of difference in our lives. [1:07:11] We went from arresting smugglers on a regular basis in my small rural county. [1:07:17] We arrested from 2021 to 2024. [1:07:19] We arrested 98 people for smuggling and over 120 people for engaging in organized criminal activity directly tied to the Mexican cartels. [1:07:29] We're no longer catching people for smuggling because it's hard to smuggle what Border Patrol won't let across the river. [1:07:36] For the first time in modern history for the past six months, not a single alien apprehended at the border has been released into the interior. [1:07:47] Sheriff, has the zero release policy dramatically reduced the burden on your deputies and on your county? [1:07:55] Yes, sir, it has. [1:07:59] ICE conducted over 100,000 arrests. [1:08:04] Arrests of murderers, of rapists, of child predators, of gang members. [1:08:09] And beyond them, the gang captains and cartel operatives who spread violence in our communities like a plague. [1:08:18] We are systematically apprehending the predators who roamed free deliberately under the Democrats' policy. [1:08:28] Sheriff Boyd, in Goliad County, is your county and is South Texas safer with these arrests and these violent criminals being deported? [1:08:39] It is. In the last three weeks alone, we've been working a joint operation with ICE and Border Patrol. [1:08:44] We've picked up 54 people detained for ICE that were in this country illegally. [1:08:51] Eleven of those had a criminal history here in the United States of America. [1:08:55] Nine of those had been previously deported. [1:08:58] And so it has made a world of difference. [1:09:00] We've focused from what's coming in to getting what's already here and getting it out. [1:09:05] You know, and I've got to say what is amazing. [1:09:07] A year into it, the Democrats could have come together and said, you know what? [1:09:12] We heard the American people at the ballot box a year ago. [1:09:15] We heard that they didn't like violent criminals being released in our communities. [1:09:19] They could have showed up at this this hearing and said, OK, it was a mistake to order federal to ignore federal immigration law and release criminals. [1:09:28] You know what they did instead? [1:09:29] Instead, the Democrat base is protesting right now for open borders, is saying we want to go back to open borders. [1:09:40] We want the invasion. Put the next poster up. [1:09:42] We want the invasion to come back. [1:09:45] It is difficult to think of a policy that is more harmful to our communities than releasing violent criminals into our communities. [1:10:03] And I, for one, am glad we have an administration that will now enforce the law and keep our communities safe. [1:10:10] Thank you to each of the witnesses. Thank you for the work you're doing. [1:10:13] I hope and pray we will never go back to another administration that for partisan political purposes says, [1:10:21] we're going to release gang members and murderers and rapists into your community, [1:10:25] and we're going to look the other way as Americans are murdered and sexually assaulted. [1:10:30] I hope that never again that happens. Thank you. [1:10:32] Thank you. [1:10:35] I want to explore a little bit more, Ms. Carter-Walters, not only what's happening in Chicago, [1:10:43] but what's happening in the sanctuary jurisdictions around the country. [1:10:48] And I agree with my colleagues the fact that our Democratic colleagues aren't here, [1:10:54] they don't care enough to actually engage, but want to just rely on talking points and misinformation [1:11:02] about what's going on in your community and other sanctuary communities. [1:11:07] That's a telling development here today, but it's consistent. [1:11:13] In my experience with their attitude about the violence, the crime, the drugs that occurred in communities all across our country, [1:11:24] but particularly in sanctuary communities. [1:11:26] So in your experience, does the activities of illegal immigrants in sanctuary cities, [1:11:37] does it focus on the gated communities, the areas of the affluent and the well-heeled, or rather does it focus on vulnerable minority communities, for example? [1:11:52] Yes, it's focused on the black communities, the vulnerable communities, exactly my community. [1:11:59] And they were placed all in our buildings. [1:12:04] So the place that happened where the ice raid happened on 75th and South Shore Drive, [1:12:13] Trendiagua had taken over that building. [1:12:16] And the fake news failed to mention that prior to that, a couple of months earlier, [1:12:23] that one of those Trendiagua gang members had executed another illegal alien, shot him in the head, [1:12:34] and buried his body in concrete in one of those apartment buildings on 75th and South Shore Drive. [1:12:41] But they didn't show that. All the fake news showed was ICE officers coming into the building, [1:12:48] saying, and lying, saying that they're arresting American citizens. [1:12:52] Well, when you saturate our communities, American citizens' community, [1:12:58] with Trendiagua and illegal alien gang members, then what do you think that's going to happen? [1:13:04] Then when ICE come in and have to do the raid to get them out of our communities, [1:13:08] because that's what we wanted and that's what we voted for, [1:13:12] then you're going to have American citizens that's going to have to be detained for a minute [1:13:20] so they can separate us and make sure we are safe. [1:13:24] And I just want to commend the officers because they did a phenomenal job. [1:13:29] They made sure that no one was hurt, no American was killed, [1:13:33] or they didn't put our lives in danger. They actually helped us. [1:13:37] And what the Democratic Party did, Mayor Brandon Johnson did, was put our life in danger [1:13:43] when he saturated our community and apartment buildings with illegal alien gang criminals. [1:13:49] Now, Trendiagua is a violent Venezuelan gang, correct? [1:13:55] Yes. [1:13:56] And you're saying in the absence of law enforcement by local and state officials in places like Illinois, [1:14:06] Chicago, Illinois, that they pretty much rule the roost in those communities. [1:14:10] They can do basically whatever they want to do with impunity. [1:14:14] Yes, because the police officers are told to stand down, just like you saw when they were blocking ICE officers in, [1:14:25] and the police chief told them to stand down. [1:14:29] They wouldn't even allow officers to help federal ICE officers. [1:14:36] They wouldn't even help them. [1:14:37] So you can imagine what it's like for just American citizens, regular citizens, [1:14:42] what we have to deal with when we call the police and complain about what's happening in our communities with illegal aliens. [1:14:50] We don't get no help. The police come and they say it's nothing they can do about it because they have stand down orders. [1:14:58] So not only are the immigration laws not being enforced, it's actually worse than that. [1:15:06] Local law enforcement in these sanctuary jurisdictions are told don't cooperate, [1:15:11] even when the life, property, and of American citizens is being jeopardized by those illegal immigrants [1:15:20] who are not being detained and not being deported. Is that right? [1:15:24] Yes. [1:15:25] And Ms. Cthell, thank you to the Washington Examiner for allowing you to come testify today. [1:15:35] And I know you're an investigative reporter, not a political advocate, [1:15:39] but we need accurate information so Congress can decide what the proper policies may be. [1:15:47] And I agree with Senator Moody, we need to do even more to make sure that the federal taxpayer [1:15:53] or the state taxpayer is not funding organizations which encourage or facilitate attacks on law enforcement, [1:16:02] including ICE and CBP officers. [1:16:05] But you mentioned in your remarks the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles. [1:16:13] And what's the acronym for that? [1:16:16] Charla. [1:16:17] Okay. [1:16:18] And it sounds like a pretty benign organization, but how are they funded? [1:16:28] Again, is this a combination of sources, both tax dollars, to these so-called NGOs, non-government organizations, [1:16:36] that are providing services to people who are in the country illegally? [1:16:42] Or is it more than that? [1:16:44] In addition to tax dollars, Charla also receives funding through ActBlue [1:16:50] as a standing campaign on ActBlue, which is the Democratic Party's primary fundraising platform? [1:16:56] What? [1:16:57] Now that's news to me. [1:16:59] ActBlue is an internet-based fundraising program which allows individuals to contribute money [1:17:10] to Democratic candidates for office. [1:17:13] But are you saying that the Coalition for Humane Immigration Rights of Los Angeles [1:17:19] also raises money on this political fundraising website? [1:17:23] Yes. [1:17:24] Many NGOs have active campaigns on ActBlue. [1:17:27] Well, that's news to me. [1:17:33] But we will certainly look into it. [1:17:38] I think, Sheriff Boyd, let me go back. [1:17:41] Even though, as Senator Cruz pointed out, the border is far more secure than it has been in years, [1:17:49] there's still a lot of people in the country that don't belong here because they've simply thumbed their nose at our laws [1:17:56] and committed various offenses against American citizens and even other illegal immigrants who've been in the country. [1:18:04] But I know that on October the 1st, your office in the Splendora Police Department helped ICE locate and arrest an illegal alien female from Mexico [1:18:14] was wanted for intentional homicide in her home country. [1:18:18] Could you talk a little bit about that particular case? [1:18:21] I think it's a matter of public record. [1:18:23] So maybe you can just fill in some of the details. [1:18:28] Yes, sir. [1:18:29] We sent some of our folks up to assist ICE in the Houston office to go out into the field [1:18:36] and help them out with conducting investigations and identifying and tracking down people that are in the country illegally. [1:18:44] One of the individuals that they wanted to track down was a female from Mexico who was wanted for homicide. [1:18:50] If I'm not mistaken, she murdered her boyfriend in the front yard of their house. [1:18:54] And she had escaped to the United States of America to avoid prosecution. [1:19:00] She was here for some time. [1:19:02] And in 2024, she was actually apprehended. [1:19:05] But the Biden administration ordered her to be released back into the United States [1:19:10] instead of deporting her for the Interpol warrant that existed for her murder trial. [1:19:14] Now, why would they do that? [1:19:15] Your guess is as good as mine. [1:19:17] But I assume because those were the people they really wanted to, you know, bring into this country. [1:19:25] So chaos brings opportunity for more control. [1:19:28] So why not have people here that cause chaos? [1:19:31] But we were able to locate her and get her identified at a house in the Colony Ridge area, [1:19:37] which, of course, Colony Ridge is a community in Texas that is known for a high concentration of people [1:19:43] who are gathered here illegally in the country. [1:19:45] We were able to get her and take her into custody and so turned her over to the federal agencies. [1:19:51] So under this administration, she will no longer be roaming the streets of Texas as a wanted murderer. [1:19:57] I'd like for you to expand a little bit on some of your earlier testimony about the connection between the cartels, [1:20:06] which are the criminal organizations that operate in this case in Mexico, [1:20:12] some of them in Central and South America as well. [1:20:16] I once heard somebody explain what their business model is, and they were called commodity agnostic. [1:20:29] Could you explain what that means to you? [1:20:32] Yes, sir. Basically, if it will make them money, they are willing to do it. [1:20:36] They really don't care. They have no conscience. [1:20:39] There is no right or wrong in the cartels world. [1:20:42] There is only making making money and having power within Mexico. [1:20:47] And so that is what they are after. [1:20:49] It doesn't matter if it is illicit tobacco products, which is a big deal for the cartels, [1:20:54] not only in the United States, but in Canada. [1:20:56] But if it's stolen vehicles, which in the state of Texas under the Biden administration, [1:21:01] we went from about 60,000 stolen vehicles a year to over 100,000 vehicles stolen a year in an effort to support the smuggling operations of the cartels. [1:21:12] It doesn't matter if it's drugs, if it's people. [1:21:15] Whatever is going to make them money is what they are going to do. [1:21:19] Illegal gambling, many of the eight liners that we have, the gambling rooms that we have across the United States, [1:21:27] have connectivity to the cartels as part of their money laundering organizations. [1:21:31] And, of course, that includes, and you've covered this, but just to emphasize, [1:21:35] it also includes smuggling things like fentanyl, which has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans over the years, [1:21:42] that primarily comes from Mexico, and making money with the drugs, but also human trafficking. [1:21:49] Every individual that they smuggle across the border, they get paid, right? [1:21:53] That is absolutely correct. [1:21:54] They get paid an upfront fee, but they also get paid additional fees while they're here in the United States. [1:22:00] And as I've articulated before, you know, we found that it takes about eight to 13 years for people to pay off that debt once they're here. [1:22:08] One of the things that Senator Moody touched on was about our enemies laughing at us. [1:22:14] But that goes right along with, you know, the cartels have been doing the same thing for quite some time. [1:22:19] And you bring up fentanyl, you'll notice that our fentanyl deaths have drastically reduced under the Trump administration. [1:22:25] The fentanyl coming in this country has drastically reduced, not just because of the fact that Border Patrol has really tightened up the border across the United States and Mexico, [1:22:35] but also the fact that the cartels, our intelligence tells us the cartels have curtailed their fentanyl production [1:22:41] because they're afraid that the administration may come into Mexico and come after them as a result of killing so many Americans. [1:22:47] And so all the cartel is doing right now is they're buying their time. [1:22:50] And if they can get to a point to where Trump is going to be out of office and we're going to have a weak administration, [1:22:57] they will immediately fire back up the fentanyl production. [1:23:00] And we will see the same tragedy happening over again if we don't fix this problem right now. [1:23:05] Now is our opportunity to defund and dismantle the cartels. [1:23:09] And if we don't take advantage of it, it's our own fault. [1:23:12] So I think sometimes people think that illegal immigration and smuggling of drugs stops at the border, [1:23:20] but you mentioned the logistical support that other criminal organizations and gangs, for example, provide. [1:23:28] What happens once the drugs are smuggled in the United States through this logistical support that you mentioned? [1:23:34] You have to look at it. [1:23:35] And is this isolated in any geographic area or is it nationwide? [1:23:40] It's pervasive. It's all the way across our nation. [1:23:43] You've got to look at the new generation Jalisco Cartel is in, I believe, 56 countries at this point in time. [1:23:51] But when it comes to the distribution of product, they are pervasive all across the United States and Mexico. [1:23:56] They have cemented their organization, solidified their business model. [1:24:01] Look at them like you would look at a large department store across the United States. [1:24:05] They have employees. They have contract employees. They have distribution networks all throughout the United States. [1:24:11] It's like a spider web, and that's the problem. [1:24:14] We have to deny them their logistical capacity to conduct their business here in the U.S. if we're going to get rid of the cartels. [1:24:20] Well, for example, Ms. Carter Walters, I know in Chicago, I'm either reading the paper or I see on TV or social media the number of violent deaths and murders that occur in Chicago on a regular basis over the weekend. [1:24:38] But, Sheriff Boyd, would you say that a significant number, some or most or all, perhaps maybe not all, of the criminal activity, including violent deaths in places like Chicago, are tied to illegal drug trafficking? [1:24:57] Absolutely. And if you look across the board in law enforcement, what we know in law enforcement is this, that at least 95% of all of the class one crimes in the United States of America that are committed, that's your burglary, robbery, sexual assault, homicide. [1:25:14] Those things are tied directly to the Mexican cartels and the products they push into this country because people commit crimes based off of greed, based off of their addiction, and based off of territorial disputes. [1:25:29] Those things across the United States, doesn't matter where you're at, tie right back to Mexico. [1:25:35] So, I think sometimes people want to differentiate or distinguish between local criminal conduct, particularly by gangs and the like. [1:25:47] But what you're saying is there's a direct connection or even a pipeline for the criminal conduct of the cartels in places like Mexico [1:25:57] and what happens in places like Chicago. [1:26:00] And I suppose that these organizations, they fight for market share and fight even among themselves. [1:26:07] And is that in part responsible for the gun deaths that you see in places like Chicago on a regular basis? [1:26:14] It is, based off of those markets that are going to have a higher value. [1:26:20] You're going to have organized crime come in and try to vie for the rights of those territories. [1:26:25] And sometimes the only way to get those rights pulled away from one organization is to take them out. [1:26:31] And you'll see a lot of that violence. [1:26:32] But, like I said, that crime is tied directly back to Mexico. [1:26:36] If somebody breaks into your house tonight, they're probably trying to feed an addiction. [1:26:40] An addiction probably to drugs that they got from a dealer who works for an organization that is a subcontractor for a contractor that works directly for the Mexican cartels. [1:26:49] So most of our major crime leads right back to Mexico. [1:26:54] So you really can't separate domestic crime and law enforcement from what's happening at the border and by virtue of these criminal organizations that we call cartels? [1:27:07] They are one and the same. [1:27:13] Well, let me thank all of you for your willingness and courage to testify. [1:27:18] You can tell that this topic is not universally popular because sometimes the truth hurts. [1:27:25] People don't want to hear it. [1:27:27] And rather than engage in reasoned debate and discussion and trying to drill down to what are the facts and what is disinformation, they just decide to ignore it altogether and stick their head in the sand. [1:27:44] And, unfortunately, you've seen some of that here today. [1:27:47] But I very much appreciate all of you being willing to come and having the courage to tell us what we need to hear in order to help make our communities safe. [1:27:59] And I know sometimes President Trump gets criticized for dispatching the National Guard or other federal law enforcement officials to some of these communities to quell the violence and to back up and assist local law enforcement. [1:28:15] But it strikes me that the reaction by the residents of those communities is much like that expressed by Mayor Bowser here in Washington, D.C. [1:28:25] When she welcomed the National Guard coming in and backing up local law enforcement, which has had a dramatic impact and reduction on crime, including carjackings, assaults, and robbery and murder in the District of Columbia. [1:28:43] And why it is that political leaders, the governors and mayors in some of these places like Illinois, ignore that and somehow hide behind these well-funded organizations which help sponsor and encourage and facilitate these demonstrations like we've seen against ICE doing the job of enforcing the law. [1:29:12] It's the law that Congress has passed. [1:29:14] If people have a disagreement with the law, then there is a forum for them to come and talk about that and petition their elected representatives to change the law. [1:29:24] But these are laws that have been passed on a bipartisan basis by Congress and these heroic law enforcement officials are doing that in communities all across the country and they don't deserve to be vilified or attacked or assaulted or even criticized, I believe, for doing the job we've actually asked them to do. [1:29:48] So thank you all for being here. [1:29:49] So thank you all for being here. [1:29:50] I appreciate your time and your testimony. [1:29:53] We're going to leave the record open for a short while here in case there are any other questions that members of the committee may have and they may come your way. [1:30:03] So keep an eye out for those if that happens. [1:30:05] I know frequently we have conflicting committee assignments and other activities so not even some senators who want to be here could be here so you may well see those follow-up questions for the record. [1:30:18] So thank you very much. [1:30:20] This hearing is adjourned.