Hakeem Jeffries says ICE is ‘out of control,’ should not be allowed to ‘storm houses of worship’

House Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries criticized Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as “out of control,” arguing that Americans do not support the targeting of non-violent illegal immigrants. Speaking on MSNOW’s “Morning Joe,” Jeffries said, “ICE is totally and completely out of control.”

“Donald Trump promised, with respect to immigration enforcement, that the administration was going to target violent felons who are here in the country illegally. That’s something the American people support,” Jeffries said. “The American people do not support the targeting, the arrest, the detention, the brutalization of American citizens, certainly do not find acceptable the killing of Renee Nicole Good, and the targeting of law-abiding immigrant families and communities.”

Jeffries also said ICE should have a clear “use of force standard,” adding that "ICE should not be able to storm houses of worship." He made the comment despite a viral incident last week in Minnesota in which anti-ICE activists stormed a church and disrupted a Christian worship service.

In recent days, the Trump administration has publicly emphasized that immigration enforcement efforts are focused on illegal immigrants who have been charged with or convicted of violent crimes. At a White House press briefing on Tuesday, President Trump said his team is prioritizing “criminals” for deportation.

“We have a lot of heart for people. They came in illegally, but they're good people. And they're working now on farms and they're working in luncheonettes and hotels and all. And we're not looking at—we're looking to get the criminals out right now, the criminals. And I think it's very important. I mean, I—every once in a while, you see a story we take somebody,” Trump said.

The Department of Homeland Security has said it has arrested more than 600,000 criminal illegal aliens, with roughly 70 percent charged with or convicted of a crime. 

“On President Trump’s first day in office, he unleashed ICE to target the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens, including pedophiles, murderers, gang members, terrorists, and rapists,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in a public statement.

“Today, we thank our law enforcement for a record breaking first year of achievements including more than 670,000 removals and two million self-deportations. DHS is committed to continuing to remove dangerous illegal aliens from American communities. 70% of ICE arrests are of criminal illegal aliens who have been convicted or charged with a crime in the U.S. We will not rest until American communities are free of the scourge of illegal alien crime.”