Democrats Push for Complete Abolition of ICE and Potential Dismantling of Homeland Security
House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), flanked by House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), speaks during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol Oct. 1, 2025. (Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP Images)
On Thursday, February 19, 2026, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) stated during a town hall in Golden Valley, Minnesota that national Democrats are pursuing sweeping changes extending far beyond abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including discussions about dismantling the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) entirely.
Omar noted, “There is an easier conversation happening today than six, seven years ago when I got to Congress, about what we need to do with ICE, which is to abolish it.” She added that significant conversations are underway regarding DHS’s potential restructuring following its dismantling.
The remarks come as Democrats continue their protest against federal immigration enforcement operations under President Donald Trump. ICE, established in 2003 under DHS, has carried out immigration enforcement actions for over two decades.
Thursday marked the sixth day of a federal government shutdown forced by congressional Democrats over their demands to reform ICE. Democratic proposals include banning agents from wearing face masks, requiring judicial warrants before arrests, and mandating body cameras—a measure the Trump administration is already moving toward.
Additionally, Democrats are seeking to prohibit immigration enforcement at sensitive locations such as hospitals, schools, and polling sites. Republicans have raised concerns that this would conflict with federal law prohibiting noncitizens from voting in U.S. elections.
In recent weeks, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat who lost the 2024 election to Trump and Vice President JD Vance, warned that federal enforcement efforts could expand nationwide: “To Americans who are watching this, if you’re in Portland or you’re in L.A., or you’re in Chicago, or you’re wherever, they’re coming next.”
Republicans argue that ICE’s enforcement actions are lawful operations carried out by federal authorities tasked with upholding immigration law. Critics of the proposals warn that dismantling ICE—or DHS more broadly—would significantly undermine national security, as DHS oversees 22 agencies responsible for homeland defense and public safety.
