Tennessee Dem state rep brags about interfering in ICE operations

A Democratic Tennessee state representative garnered sharp criticism on Tuesday after uploading a video of herself attempting to interfere with a recent US Immigration and Customs (ICE) operation near Nashville. In the video, Rep. Aftyn Behn (D-Nashville) can be observed following federal and state law enforcement officers in a vehicle, where Behn stated she had been "bullying" ICE agents and Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) officers in an effort to thwart a May 9 immigration enforcement operation in Madison, Tennessee. This came while ICE had been conducting a weeklong targeted immigration enforcement operation to take in significant public safety threats, which resulted in 196 apprehensions.

"This is Nashville State Representative Aftyn Behn. She just posted a 15-minute video of her and a friend stalking the Tennessee Highway Patrol as they carried out official duties - openly admitting they were trying to stall law enforcement from stopping illegal aliens," wrote Republican Tennessee Congressman Andy Ogles on X, who was quick to condemn the rep's actions. "Let's be clear: [the mayor of Nashville] is enabling Nashville liberals to actively obstruct ICE and law enforcement operations. This isn't just reckless - it's aiding and abetting."

According to the video clip posted on Instagram, Rep. Behn and her friend, identified as Nicki Pope, were following ICE and THP in a vehicle to several destinations in the Nashville area on May 9. Behn had been sitting in the passenger seat while Pope was driving them around in the dark. It's unclear if this occurred at night or during the early morning hours. Behn captioned the post: "MADISON ICE WATCH...Stalled at least 4 ICE vehicles for 20 minutes."

"This is great! We got our girl squad, and we're bullying the ICE vehicles and state troopers," Behn said in the video with a grin on her face, proclaiming, "So, this is like, this is a win!" Flashing red and blue police lights could be seen in the video.

Rep. Behn then directed the camera to Pope, who reported that they had been pulled over by a Tennessee Highway Patrol officer involved with the ICE operation for allegedly running a red light. This, after she explained that the mischievous duo had just followed ICE and THP to a gas station and "took their spot" in the parking lot, which made them "a little upset," she said.

"So, then they were leaving, and I left, too," said Pope in the video. Flashing blue and red police lights could be seen in the distance. "They pulled into another parking lot, and I pulled in behind them. Then they flipped their lights to pull us over and accused me of running a red light," she said.

This incident comes after Rep. Ogles called on Congress last week to launch a full investigation into Nashville Democratic Mayor Freddie O'Connell and several other unnamed Democratic "municipal leaders" for their "repeated obstruction of ICE operations." Mayor O'Connell was quick to condemn a weeklong targeted ICE operation, which resulted in the arrest of 196 criminal illegal immigrants in Nashville. 95 of them had criminal convictions or pending charges, while 31 of them unlawfully returned to the US following a previous deportation, according to ICE. Following the operation, the mayor redeclared the city's sanctuary status and directed community members to report local law enforcement officers for potentially cooperating with ICE in violation of the sanctuary statute.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has not publicly commented on Rep. Behn's video. The federal agency, as well as Border Czar Tom Homan, has made it clear that any official or citizen who interferes with ICE operations could be subject to arrest and prosecution. Recent notable arrests and/or prosecutions include Wisconsin District Court Judge Hannah Dugan and New Jersey Democratic Congresswoman LaMonica McIver.