‘Unrealistic and unserious’: GOP trashes Dems’ demands over DHS funding

Chuck Schumer, who forced a six-week government shutdown last fall only to fail in his demands that Congress raid taxpayer’s bank accounts for a trillion dollars for Democrat projects, now has come up with a 10-point agenda he’s demanding Congress follow in order for his party to support a new funding plan for the Department of Homeland Security.

Republicans have trashed it as “unrealistic and unserious.”

Congress has agreed to funding bills for all other parts of the government, but the Democrats have blocked the DHS plan because they object to President Donald Trump’s use of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to enforce the nation’s border and immigration laws.

It’s reached a flashpoint in Minneapolis where not only are their major investigations into social services fraud in the state’s Somali immigrant community where thousands of criminals already have been arrested, but federal officials have shot and killed two agitators allegedly blocking their work.

One woman was killed when she drove her vehicle into an ICE officer, injuring him. The details of the death of the other agitator, a man, are less clear. Both remain under investigation.

According to a CBS report, Republicans appear unready to cave in to Schumer’s demands.

“As of right now, we aren’t anywhere close to having any sort of an agreement that would enable us to fund the Department of Homeland Security,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune explained.

Schumer, along with Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, have created a list of 10 demands for DHS.

The New York Post reports they included:

• Barring DHS officers from entering private property without a judicial warrant
• Banning ICE and immigration officers from wearing masks
• Requiring officers to display their name, ID number and agency they work for
• Restricting operations near schools, churches, polling places and medical and child care facilities
• Prohibit execution of stops based on individuals’ jobs, ethnicity, race, language or accent
• Passage of a “reasonable use of force policy”
• Allow state and local governments to investigate and prosecute potential crimes and case excessive force
• Allow states to sue the Department of Homeland Security
• Mandate body cameras on officers
• Regulate and standardize the uniforms and equipment that DHS officers can use

Government officials already had seen parts of the list, and rejected them for handicapping legitimate federal law enforcement efforts.

While Democrats claimed their plans would simply put “guardrails” on DHS, their plans actually would circumvent many of the federal operations going on now.

For example, the demand that officers obtain judicial warrants for arrests on private property would put the federal government under the thumb of sometimes-activist local judges such as the one that rejected federal charges against failed CNN talk show entertainer Don Lemon, who disrupted a church worship service in violation of the law.

The Democrats also are demanding DHS Secretary Kristi Noem be removed and immigration enforcement in Minnesota be ended.

Thume said the plans are “unrealistic and unserious” and pointed out Democrats aren’t “even willing to engage in a negotiation and discussion to try and reach a result.”

Sen. Katie Britt of Alabama is leading negotiations for Senate Republicans and called Democrat demands a “ridiculous Christmas list of demands for the press.”

She explained Democrats are not negotiating in good faith.