Latest news with #HouseHomelandSecurityCommittee
Middle East Eye
4 days ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Zohran Mamdani faces racist smears and calls for citizenship to be stripped
Zohran Mamdani is facing a barrage of racist attacks this week and a call by a Republican lawmaker for him to be stripped of his citizenship after his 24 June victory in the New York City primary election for mayor. The pro-Palestinian Democratic Socialist won the Democratic nomination for mayor with a clear majority after 93 percent of the votes were counted. Before his victory, he faced racist attacks from New York City councilwoman Vickie Paladino and Congressman Randy Fine, both from the Republican party, while after the win, Republican Andy Ogles called for Mamdani to be deported and denaturalised. In a post on X on 26 June, Ogles said: "Zohran 'little muhammad' Mamdani is an antisemitic, socialist, communist who will destroy the great City of New York. He needs to be DEPORTED. Which is why I am calling for him to be subject to denaturalization proceedings.' Ogles also attached a letter to attorney general Pam Bondi, accusing Mamdani of procuring his citizenship through 'willful mirepresentation or concealment of material support for terrorism'. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The comments drew condemnation from several of Ogle's colleagues, including Democratic Congressman Shri Thanedar and the House Homeland Security Committee Democrats, as well as Muslim American members of Congress. 'This type of racism has no place in America,' Thanedar said in a post on X on 26 June. 'This type of racism has no place in America. Immigrants make our country great, and I strongly condemn this blatant, anti-immigrant bigotry from Andy Ogles'. The House Homeland Security Committee Democrats referred to his comments in a 26 June post on X as 'Racist drivel.' Democratic Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib on Friday posted a statement on X from Muslim American members of Congress condemning Ogle's "anti-Muslim" attacks. "The vile, anti-Muslim and racists smears from our colleagues on both sides of the aisle attacking Zohran Mamdani cannot be met with silence," the statement read. The statement was signed on to by Tlaib, Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Lateefah Simon, and Congressman Andre Carson. Corey Saylor, research and advocacy director at the civil rights and advocacy organisation Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) told Middle East Eye that the attacks on Mamdani were part of an entrenched decades-long perspective on Muslims: 'The anti-Muslim bigotry that has erupted online in the wake of New York City's Democratic mayoral primary is as dishonest as it is dangerous." Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani fends off hate as he inspires New Yorkers Read More » He added that it was 'nothing new' to the American-Muslim community. 'The politicians, influencers and hate groups unleashing a wave of irrational Islamophobic talking points are weaponising the same tactics that have been used for decades to manipulate Americans into fearing any Muslims engaged in political life,' he added. 'Islamophobia is the last widely accepted form of bigotry in American political life, and this must change before it leads to more discrimination and threats of violence against American Muslims pursuing public office". But it wasn't just lawmakers who have been targeting Mamdani since his victory. Stephen Miller, the White House assistant chief of staff, who is frequently referred to as the architect behind Trump's immigration policies, alluded to Mamdani in a post on X on 25 June, saying that 'NYC is the clearest warning yet of what happens to a society when it fails to control migration'. Miller himself is the grandson of a Jewish immigrant who fled religious persecution from modern-day Belarus to the United States. Prior to his election success, Mamdani had already been the target of a smear campaign that painted him as an antisemite, funded to the tune of $25m by a Super PAC called "Fix the City". He even faced death threats, with his office receiving voicemails including a threat to blow up his car. Mamdani teared up when speaking of the impact of such attacks during his campaign, saying he had received a message saying, 'The only good Muslim is a dead Muslim'. Mamdani is an Indian-origin Muslim who moved from Uganda to New York City when he was seven years old and became a naturalised citizen in 2018.
Boston Globe
6 days ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
A look at how Trump's big bill could change the US immigration system
Advertisement That's what happened earlier in June when protests triggered unrest in parts of Los Angeles. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up 'The lawlessness happening in LA is ANOTHER reason why we need to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill IMMEDIATELY,' House Speaker Mike Johnson wrote on X. 'It provides the ESSENTIAL funding needed to secure our nation's borders.' Plenty, though, remains unclear about the legislation. 'One thing about this bill, these sections are super vague,' said Adam Isacson, a researcher with the Washington-based human rights advocacy organization WOLA, including multibillion-dollar expenditures sometimes explained in just a few vague lines. 'There's no real specificity in the bill about how it's going to be spent.' Here's a look at some key immigration sections of the 1,000-page bill, as approved by the House, and what it could mean for the US government's posture on immigration: Advertisement PROJECT: The wall WHAT THE BILL SAYS: The bill sets aside $46.5 billion for what the House Homeland Security Committee calls an 'integrated border barrier system,' including fencing, water barriers, law enforcement access roads and technology like movement sensors. The funding would complete 701 miles of primary walls and 900 miles of river barriers along the US-Mexico border, according to the committee. It is the bill's largest expenditure. 'Any lawmaker who claims to care about border security will need to put their money where their mouth is and work to advance these recommendations,' said the committee's chairman, Republican Representative Mark Green of Tennessee. THE IMPACT: Building the wall has long been one of Trump's signature promises, but its impacts beyond political symbolism are unclear. Illegal border crossings have plunged since Trump took office in January amid a string of orders on immigration, including the suspension of the asylum system. Simply ending asylum meant tens of thousands of people who would've surrendered to law enforcement instead of trying to avoid capture didn't even attempt to cross. Plus, the effectiveness of border walls is hotly debated, even in populated areas where barriers tend to be heavily reinforced. Human smugglers, often linked to drug cartels, have used tunnels, ladders and power tools to cross walls. But, experts note that though illegal crossings are down now, that can change rapidly. PROJECT: Detention facilities and staff WHAT THE BILL SAYS: The bill, which top White House aide and immigration hawk Stephen Miller has called 'the most essential piece of legislation currently under consideration in the entire Western World,' sets aside $45 billion to expand the network of immigrant detention facilities for adult migrants and families. Advertisement The standards in adult facilities, the bill notes, would be set at 'the sole discretion of the Secretary of Homeland Security.' More than $12 billion was also requested for 18,000 new ICE and Border Patrol personnel. THE IMPACT: ICE has said it wants to increase its current detention capacity from about 41,000 people to 100,000. It's part of what ICE's acting director, Todd Lyons, has suggested is a deportation system that could function 'like Amazon, trying to get your product delivered in 24 hours.' ICE currently has about 6,000 deportation officers, a number that's been stagnant for years. While expanding staff and detention centers would make it easier for the administration to increase deportations, even the tens of billions of dollars the bill requests may not be enough to meet Trump's goals. Miller has said ICE should be making 3,000 arrests per day of people in the country illegally. That's a vast increase over the roughly 650 arrested a day in the first five months of Trump's second term. But the plans are a boon to America's private prison industry, with stock prices for the two dominant companies, Geo Group Inc. and CoreCivic, up more than 50 percent since Trump's election. PROJECT: Immigration courts WHAT THE BILL SAYS: The legislation sets aside $1.25 billion for the immigration court system, with funds to hire more immigration judges and support staff and to expand courtroom capacity. The courts' annual budget currently stands at roughly $850 million. THE IMPACT: The immigration court system, which has roughly 700 judges, has struggled for years with chronic understaffing and a backlog that has reached more than 3.6 million cases. Judges typically take more than five years to make decisions. Advertisement It's a chaotic system, with overworked judges, a shortage of translators and immigrants who often don't have lawyers. The chaos has grown in recent weeks, with immigration courts seeing a spike in arrests outside courtrooms as agents wait to detain immigrants attending routine hearings. The arrests have spread fed confusion and fear, especially among asylum-seekers, who are accustomed to remaining free while their cases plod their way through the system. The proposed funding would be 'a significant increase, and from an institutional perspective it's urgently needed money,' said Greg Chen, director of government relations for the American Immigration Lawyers Association. But he also believes the rising numbers of courthouse arrests reflect an administration looking for ways to bypass immigration courts. PROJECT: Immigration fees WHAT THE BILL SAYS: The bill overhauls the system of immigration costs, with dramatic increases and new fees imposed for once-free services. Applying for asylum, which has long been free, will now cost $1,000, with asylum-seekers paying another $550 for employment applications. Among other fee increases, appealing an immigration judge decision jumps from $110 to $900 and applying for temporary protected status, which allows people from certain countries facing civil unrest or natural disasters to stay temporarily in the U.S., goes from $50 to $500. THE IMPACT: For wealthier immigrants, the new fees will be an inconvenience. But for the vast majority of people even a few hundred dollars could be enough to make them change their plans.
The Hill
18-06-2025
- Science
- The Hill
Calls for facial recognition alternatives are unsustainable
Despite being penned by House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Mark Green (R-Tenn.), Friday's opinion piece urging 'an alternative' to facial recognition technology offers a bizarre string of statements that do not make the case. Each biometric modality (fingerprint, iris, face, etc.) offers advantages that could make it the most effective for a specific purpose. But there are data-backed reasons facial recognition technology is widely adopted — including the ability to use existing hardware (cameras) and photos, rather than requiring specialized equipment and data collection processes. With rapid improvement through machine learning and neural networks, the leading technologies are now over 99 percent accurate across demographics according to National Institute of Standards and Technology data. Customs and Border Protection selected face recognition for its programs and has since verified more than 697 million travelers of all nationalities and ethnicities. More than 2 million U.S. air travelers use facial recognition technology every day to verify IDs at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints. Much is made about the risk of fraudsters getting the software to falsely match, but the figures cited are from research limited to unlocking personal phones, and conducted before Face ID was introduced on iPhones in 2017. Since then, presentation attack detection capabilities have been integrated into iPhones as well as higher security biometric applications. Fake videos, printed photos and masks are not a concern in an in-person setting where human detection of spoofing efforts would be immediate. The potential for fraud is with remote, online verification, where presentation attack detection measures are commonly combined with matching software. Homeland Security's Science and Technology Directorate is testing these technologies, showing so far, the leading presentation attack detection technologies detect spoofing attempts 100 percent of the time. Across the nation, facial recognition technology is successfully leveraged in law enforcement to find missing children, fight human trafficking and stop dangerous criminals. It's unclear how facial recognition technology alternatives would work, when the only evidence from a crime scene may be security video, recordings from by-standers or online media. We agree, China's use of technology 'to control its citizenry' is unacceptable. But this shouldn't deter U.S. agencies from leading the way in responsible use of (non-Chinese) technology under established privacy rules, bounded by the Constitution and subject to congressional oversight. Jake Parker is senior director of government relations for the Security Industry Association (SIA). He came to SIA with more than 12 years of experience on Capitol Hill, most recently as legislative director for Rep. Tom Latham (R-Iowa), a senior member of the House Appropriations Committee.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Democrats demand testimony from Noem over Padilla handcuffing
Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee called on their Republican counterparts to hold a hearing with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, saying she must be held to account for the treatment of Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). Noem's security forcibly removed Padilla after he interrupted her press conference in Los Angeles on Thursday. He identified himself and tried to ask a question as he was pushed out of the room, onto the ground and handcuffed. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), joined by the other Democrats on the panel, said Padilla's effort to question Noem was inspired by 'an abysmal record of responding to inquiries and document requests from Capitol Hill.' 'Senator Padilla was doing his job when he attempted to communicate their outrage to Secretary Noem and ask questions about the administration's brazen actions in the State,' he wrote, describing Padilla's removal as 'a mortifying display for the Department and for the country.' Trump administration officials have said the security officers acted appropriately in removing someone they didn't recognize from the press conference. But Padilla was escorted to the event by federal security and used his name and title when interjecting. 'Secretary Noem was present and aware of what was happening and at no point attempted to intervene. She later gave the excuse that no one in the room recognized the Senator, which we know is not true,' wrote Thompson, the top Democrat on the panel. 'If it was true that neither the Secretary nor anyone who works for her was able to identify one of the two Senators of a State in which her Department is executing widespread immigration raids, she should take responsibility and apologize for the fact their ignorance resulted in the Senator being treated as a criminal. Instead, the Secretary has been slandering the Senator, falsely suggesting that he never identified himself and that he lunged at her. Video footage of the incident demonstrates both accusations to be patently false.' The letter was addressed to Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.), who announced this week he plans to resign from Congress to pursue an opportunity in the private sector. Thompson asked Green to 'summon the Secretary of Homeland Security to testify about the egregious treatment of Senator Alex Padilla.' Neither Green nor Noem's office immediately responded to request for comment. Noem did meet with Padilla shortly after the incident. 'I think everyone would agree that wasn't appropriate,' she said during the press conference. 'When I leave here I'll find him and visit and find out really what his concerns were. I think everybody in America would agree that that wasn't appropriate, that if you wanted to have a civil discussion, especially as a leader, a public official, that you would reach out and try to have a conversation,' she said. Padilla has said his treatment raises questions about what happens off camera. 'I will say this: If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, I can only imagine what they're doing to farmworkers, to cooks, to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country,' he said in a press conference after meeting with Noem. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
13-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Democrats demand testimony from Noem over Padilla handcuffing
Democrats on the House Homeland Security Committee called on their Republican counterparts to hold a hearing with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, saying she must be held to account for the treatment of Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.). Noem's security forcibly removed Padilla after he interrupted her press conference on Thursday. He identified himself and tried to ask a question as he was pushed out of the room, onto the ground, and handcuffed. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), joined by the other Democrats on the panel, said Padilla's effort to question Noem was inspired by 'an abysmal record of responding to inquiries and document requests from Capitol Hill.' 'Senator Padilla was doing his job when he attempted to communicate their outrage to Secretary Noem and ask questions about the administration's brazen actions in the State,' he wrote, describing Padilla's removal as 'a mortifying display for the Department and for the country.' Trump administration officials have said the security officers acted appropriately in removing someone they didn't recognize from the press conference. But Padilla was escorted to the event by federal security and used his name and title when interjecting. 'Secretary Noem was present and aware of what was happening and at no point attempted to intervene. She later gave the excuse that no one in the room recognized the Senator, which we know is not true,' wrote Thompson, the top Democrat on the panel. 'If it was true that neither the Secretary nor anyone who works for her was able to identify one of the two Senators of a State in which her Department is executing widespread immigration raids, she should take responsibility and apologize for the fact their ignorance resulted in the Senator being treated as a criminal. Instead, the Secretary has been slandering the Senator, falsely suggesting that he never identified himself and that he lunged at her. Video footage of the incident demonstrates both accusations to be patently false.' The letter was addressed to Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.) who announced this week he plans to resign from Congress to pursue an opportunity in the private sector. Thompson asked Green to 'summon the Secretary of Homeland Security to testify about the egregious treatment of Senator Alex Padilla.' Neither Green nor Noem's office immediately responded to request for comment. Noem did meet with Padilla shortly after the incident. 'I think everyone would agree that wasn't appropriate,' she said once the press conference began. 'When I leave here I'll find him and visit and find out really what his concerns were. I think everybody in America would agree that that wasn't appropriate, that if you wanted to have a civil discussion, especially as a leader, a public official, that you would reach out and try to have a conversation,' she said. Padilla has said his treatment raises questions about what happens off camera. 'I will say this: If this is how this administration responds to a senator with a question, I can only imagine what they're doing to farm workers to cooks to day laborers out in the Los Angeles community and throughout California and throughout the country,' he said in a press conference after meeting with Noem.
