Senator warns of 'powder keg' as people condone behavior of anti-ICE protesters

A Republican senator warned lawmakers Thursday of a "powder keg" in the U.S. as people "villainize" Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and condone the behavior of anti-ICE protesters. 

Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri made the remark as the Senate Committee on Armed Services gathered on Capitol Hill for a hearing about the Trump administration’s deployment of National Guard troops across the U.S. 

"You've seen a 1,000% increase in assaults on ICE officers. So to my Democrat colleagues who want to have this hearing, we got to be honest about what's actually happening out there. This rhetoric is making it open season on law enforcement. And it is incredibly dangerous," Schmitt said. 

"So when we villainize ICE agents who have family members, who are husbands, who are mothers, who are simply enforcing the laws that... Congress has passed over the years. This is insane. And the condoning of people blocking off vehicles from, you know, enforcing the law, these ICE agents, this is a powder keg. It's a powder keg," he added.

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Schmitt said he is "very thankful for the men and women who are serving this country, who are protecting those agents, who are protecting federal assets. And the president's well within his authority to do it." 

Earlier in his remarks, Schmitt told lawmakers, "You have the L.A., sort of Portland scenario, where Antifa, in particular, which is now thankfully been designated not only as a domestic terrorist organization, but a foreign terrorist organization because of their tactics." 

"The fact is, this is a network decentralized that has safe houses and financing across the world, including the United States, who wants to do harm to ICE agents. And so what I don't hear a lot from my Democrat colleagues — they might condemn the violence, but what's telling is you don't hear any of them say, stand back and let ICE do their jobs, because the fact is, they just don't actually believe in immigration enforcement," he continued. 

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"They think that everybody has a right to be here and no one should ever have to go home. Borders don't really matter. And so the villainizing of our law enforcement agents, especially ICE, is really destructive and leading this. Which then brings us to today, which is why the National Guard has been deployed in places like Los Angeles and in Oregon," Schmitt added.

Schmitt also asked witness Gen. Gregory Guillot, the commander of the U.S. Northern Command, to describe "some of the tactics that are being used right now by these thugs on the streets, these criminals who are seeking to entice federal agents out with firecrackers or whatever it is, so that they can actually take shots at them so they can assault them." 

"Senator, you just described many of the tactics that were being used when Title 10 forces were directed into Los Angeles to protect federal activities, to include ICE, conduct of their duties," Guillot said.