Rep. Gutierrez Blasts 'Dictatorial Shenanigans' After Being Blocked From ICE Meeting

By Stephen Gossett in News on Feb 16, 2017 11:38PM

Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL) was one of at least eight Democratic representatives who were barred from a meeting with the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Thursday after their names were not included on what a House Republican reportedly said was an agreed-upon list.

Gutierrez said he was asked to leave by staff of House Speaker Paul Ryan. (Ryan did not attend the meeting, according to reports.) "In 20-plus years, I have never heard of the Republicans controlling what meetings Democrats can have with officials of the Executive Branch and never had a staffer ask me to leave a meeting to which I am entitled to attend," Gutierrez said in a statement.

The conference took place between lawmakers and ICE Acting Director Thomas Homan. Eight Democratic lawmakers were allowed to attend the meeting, including Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairwoman Michelle Lujan Grisham (D-N.M), according to Salon. But House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi reportedly told media no members of the Hispanic Caucus were initially invited to attend Thursday's meet-up.

Politico reported that a source from inside the meeting that Rep. Bob Goodlatte, who chairs the House Committee on the Judiciary, asked Democratic legislators who were not on an agreed-upon list to vacate.

AshLee Strong, a spokesperson for Ryan, told Politico:

"Members of the CHC expressed interest in attending, and to accommodate the request, we welcomed the chair of the CHC to join on behalf of the other members," Strong said. "We are confident that the CHC chair is capable of representing the views of her caucus, and this arrangement was made very clear to the CHC ahead of time."

Thursday's meeting with the ICE director came two days after Homan suddenly canceled a previously scheduled meeting.

Gutierrez said that he needs answers from the agency about deportations and ICE's targeting priorities in the wake of ICE raids that happened last week. In the raids, more than 600 people were arrested across the country, nearly 50 of them in Chicago. "My constituents have questions about who is being targeted by ICE, which DREAMers with DACA they are targeting for deportation, which victims of domestic violence ICE is deporting, which immigrants at church shelters are being targeted," Gutierrez said in the statement. " We know the statements by Trump about targeting criminals is a lie, but we were hoping someone could give us the truth or any information at all."

Gutierrez added, "I expect such dictatorial shenanigans from the Trump Administration, but not from competent, compassionate legislators like Speaker Ryan or from legislators like Bob Goodlatte. Do they have ear pieces feeding them orders from President Bannon or the others making decisions in the White House?"

Gutierrez said that Rep. Goodlatte told lawmakers that future meetings with ICE officials would need to be cleared by the GOP's Judiciary Committee Chair.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus addressed media outside the meeting, calling for more transparency: