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Page 2 of 1 million deportations a year. This effort has led to the reassignment of FBI agents, U.S. Marshals, DEA, and CBP officers to immigration enforcement duties ultimately straining national security resources, diverting attention away from investigating serious crimes, and raising real concerns about the public safety priorities of this administration.' During Secretary Noem's confirmation hearing, you stated that DHS "would work every day to make sure people are safe and that those with criminal convictions are immediately removed." 6 However, it is clear that ICE is now targeting immigrants with no criminal history, many of whom are asylum seekers, parolees admitted through lawful processes, and students like Dylan a 20-year-old Bronx high schooler who was detained after attending his court hearing alone and without a lawyer. He has since been transferred across four states, denied medical treatment, and cut off from legal representation.'Dylan entered the United States lawfully in 2024, enrolled in public school, had employment authorization, and had no criminal record at the time of his detainment. This new policy, designed to meet an arbitrary quota of deportations, is not targeting criminals the"worst of the worst" as administration officials have repeatedly claimed ' but instead is surreptitiously and deceptively aimed at those who are following the rules, voluntarily appearing in court, and doing it the right way. This policy neither targets criminals nor makes the public safer. Instead, this policy creates perverse incentives for immigrants who are pursuing lawful pathways into our country and will encourage immigrants to go further underground and avoid following the lawful and official immigration process. This will not only result in the loss of tax and social security revenue contributed by asylum-seekers eligible for work authorization but will lead to greater disorder and public safety concerns. When combined with diverting significant law enforcement resources to arrests of non-violent immigrants instead of violent felons, the impact of this new policy makes our communities less safe. The United States is a nation founded by immigrants that has benefited immensely from immigration. As a democracy grounded in the principles of due process and equal protection under the law, the use of courthouse ambush tactics not only undermines those principles but directly contradicts the Department's stated mission to uphold the law with integrity. 5 "Kristi Nome Testifies at Senate Confirmation Hearing," Rev.com, accessed May 30,2025, https://www.rev.com/transcripteditor/shared/QmAMnvocJpXkMLCFO3o9JK49iQCUHBKmns9lem*xa RSkEmQtFXQ yzzPBVWeJ EQI6YbRX6hnbF-YxQfnrAYC5ow2d Qs?load From=Pasted Deepl ink&ts=6383.88 6 Marcia Kramer, "New York City Public School Student Detained by ICE at Asylum Hearing," CBS News New York, May 27,2025, https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/nvc-high-school-student-immigrant-detained-ice/ 'See,e.g., Exec.Order No. 14159, 90 Fed. Reg.8443(Jan.20,2025) (noting focus of immigration enforcement on those "who threaten the safety or security of the American people"); REUTERS,Trump to appoint former ICE director Tom Homan as US`border czar' (Nov. 11,2024), https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump- appointformer-ice-director-tom-homan-countrys-border-czar-2024-11-11/ ("Tom Homan...said on Monday he would prioritize deporting immigrants in the United States illegally who pose threats to public safety and national security");The Department of Homeland Security's Budget Request for Fiscal Year 2026: Hearing Before the Senate Comm.on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs(May 20,2025) (Statement of Sec. Kristi Noem) ("once again,the United States is enforcing immigration laws to arrest,identify,detain and remove dangerous illegal alien criminals.We're prioritizing those that are a public safety threat to people,especially those who are affiliated with the terrorist organizations MS-13 and Tren de Aragua."). 8 8 U.S.C.§ 1158