White House releases list of Democrats over anti-ICE rhetoric

Share this:

The White House on Friday released a list of nearly 30 Democratic officials it accused of inciting violence against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a move critics called disturbing given that it targeted elected leaders for their political rhetoric. The announcement followed a deadly attack on an ICE facility in Dallas, where a gunman killed one detainee and critically wounded two others before fatally shooting himself. No ICE personnel were harmed.

The administration argued Democrats had fueled hostility by comparing ICE to “fascists” or “Gestapo.” But the list contained only political statements, not evidence of organized incitement, leading opponents to describe it as an intimidation tactic against dissent.

Officials named by the White House include:

Gov. Tim Walz – called ICE the “modern-day Gestapo.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom – likened ICE to “secret police” and said people had a “right to push back.”
Gov. JB Pritzker – compared ICE tactics to “Nazi Germany.”
Rep. Robin Kelly – called ICE the “Gestapo” and a “betrayal.”
Rep. Jasmine Crockett – compared ICE to “slave patrols.”
Rep. Sylvia Garcia – referred to agents as “thugs.”
Rep. Delia Ramirez – called ICE “a terror force.”
Rep. Pramila Jayapal – said ICE agents were “deranged,” accused them of “kidnapping,” and praised “resistance.”
Rep. Rashida Tlaib – said ICE was “terrorizing our communities” and called it a “rogue agency.”
Rep. Ayanna Pressley – said ICE was “terrorizing our communities.”
Rep. Max Frost – likened ICE operations to “crimes against humanity.”
Rep. John Larson – called ICE “the SS” and “the Gestapo.”
Rep. LaMonica McIver – urged people to “shut down the city.”
Rep. Stephen Lynch – referred to ICE as “the Gestapo” and “nondescript thugs.”
Rep. Dan Goldman – compared federal agents to “secret police.”
Rep. Becca Balint – called ICE “vigilantes.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar – called ICE agents “vile and beyond cruel” and supported abolishing the agency.
Rep. Nikki Budzinski – called ICE “dangerous and reckless.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders – urged people to “stop ICE … as soon as possible.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren – accused ICE of “stoking fear” and “tearing communities apart.”
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries – urged people to “fight … in the streets” against ICE.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu – compared ICE to neo-Nazi group NSC-131.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson – said ICE was acting like “secret police.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass – accused ICE of “kidnapping.”
Rep. Gil Cisneros – said ICE used “racial profiling” and “terrorized” people.
Rep. Eric Swalwell – said ICE agents should “no longer be faceless,” likening them to “KGB officers.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – declared ICE “should not exist.”
Rep. Kweisi Mfume – challenged the administration to “a street fight.”
Rep. Jerry Nadler – accused ICE of “hiding misbehavior.”

Publishing such a list of political opponents is unusual in modern U.S. politics. While the White House claimed Democrats’ rhetoric has endangered ICE agents, civil liberties advocates warned the move risks weaponizing federal power to stigmatize dissent.