Newark Mayor’s ICE Arrest Sparks Calls to Abolish Agency
Newark’s Democratic mayor, Ras Baraka, was arrested by ICE agents for attempting to inspect a detention center allegedly violating city lawsuits. Accompanying Congress members were also physically assaulted by ICE agents during the incident, highlighting escalating tensions between the agency and elected officials. Despite past calls from prominent Democrats to abolish ICE, current party leadership has largely abandoned this stance, even in the face of numerous documented abuses of power by the agency. This inaction raises concerns about the Democrats’ willingness to confront what critics describe as an increasingly authoritarian and violent agency.