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yesterday

After Minneapolis Killing, Democrats Press ICE Reforms as DHS Deadline Nears

Reform ideas range from narrowing qualified immunity to restricting ICE operations.

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (L), Democrat of New York, and U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (R), Democrat of New York, hold a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on January 8, 2026.
Demonstrators outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in St. Paul, Minnesota, US, on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026.
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Overview

  • Reps. Eric Swalwell and Dan Goldman said they will introduce the ICE OUT Act to limit when civil ICE officers can claim qualified immunity by replacing subjective self-defense claims with an objective standard.
  • Rep. Shri Thanedar announced an Abolish ICE Act that would dismantle the agency and end its enforcement authority, reflecting calls from some Democrats for sweeping structural change.
  • Sen. Chris Murphy plans legislation to require warrants for arrests, prohibit masks during operations, limit ICE gun use in civil actions, and confine Border Patrol to the border, with an eye toward tying reforms to DHS funding.
  • Top Democrats Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries have not endorsed defunding ICE, a stance that tempers prospects for aggressive cuts as Congress approaches the Jan. 30 DHS appropriations deadline.
  • House Speaker Mike Johnson warned against limiting homeland security funding, while Sen. Lisa Murkowski urged policy changes, and DHS has defended the Minneapolis shooting as self-defense despite criticism and disputed video accounts.