WASHINGTON —Today, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) issued a statement in response to the FY2019 government funding package released this morning:

“In this country, our diversity is our greatest strength. Immigrants fuel our nation’s economy, enrich our nation’s culture, and enhance our social fabric.  Quite simply, we are a better nation because of our immigrants.

“And yet, this Administration continues to threaten the dignity and humanity of our immigrant population. The Department of Homeland Security has separated thousands of children from their parents, denied asylum to those fleeing danger, and used taxpayers dollars as a slush fund to incite terror in immigrant communities. The efficacy of a government agency must be determined by assessing ‘outcomes.’ By any reasonable measure, Donald Trump’s weaponization of ICE and CBP has been a failure. The Department of Homeland Security does not deserve an increase in funding, and that is why we intend to vote no on this funding package.

“The funding bill on the floor today does not address any of our concerns and instead, gives more money to these abusive agencies:

• This bill gives $14.9 billion to CBP, nearly $950 million above current funding levels.
• This bill gives $7.6 billion to ICE, an increase of more than $500 million.
• The bill provides $1.37 billion for 55 miles of a border wall.
• This bill includes funding for an 11% increase in detention beds—an average of more than 45,000 per day, providing ICE the ability to detain 5,000 additional people per day.

 “We want to be abundantly clear: this is not a rebuke of federal workers or those who depend on the services they provide, but a rejection of the hateful policies, priorities, and rhetoric of the Trump Administration.”