White House Says ICE Will Reduce Deportations, Detention Capacity If Republicans Don’t Pass Border Bill

The White House on Thursday announced that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will soon be “forced” to reduce operations at the southern border due to lack of funds.

Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that because Republicans have not passed the bipartisan border security agreement with funding for Israel and Ukraine, the administration is left with no choice but to pull back from the border.

“Because congressional Republicans are choosing partisan politics over our national security and refusing to pass the bipartisan national security agreement that includes significant border reforms and funding, over the coming weeks, ICE will be forced to reduce operations because of budget shortfalls,” Jean-Pierre said during a gaggle on Air Force One.

“We have asked Congress for additional funding and resources, and every time Congress has provided less than we asked for, or most recently, completely ignored our supplemental request,” she said.

The announcement that ICE will reduce enforcement operations comes after U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported more than 3.2 million encounters with illegal immigrants at the border, the highest ever recorded.

Jean-Pierre said that without additional appropriations, “ICE would be forced to reduce its removal operations, its total detention capacity and more.”

“When ICE can’t conduct these operations, our national security and public safety will be harmed. Speaker Johnson and congressional Republicans should be held accountable. This was their choice,” she said.

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