Sorry folks, but I have to throw this one out at you.
The slogan “Abolish ICE” seems to be popping up all over the progressive left in the wake of Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez’s victory in the New York primary. With all due respect to Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, who seems to have great potential for our side, I must demur with her and others’ use of the “Abolish ICE” slogan. It is a loser for us, both substantively and politically.
First, the substance. Calling for a government agency to be abolished is the equivalent of shooting the messenger. It distracts attention from the true guilty parties. A Executive Branch agency like ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) is staffed mainly by career officials who follow the direction of their politically appointed superiors, especially the President and, in this case, Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen. The actions taken by ICE are a direct result of the political direction they are getting. ICE was not causing outrages like family separations under the Obama administration for a simple reason: Barack Obama was president and not Donald Trump.
Pointing fingers at ICE merely lets the true villains off the hook. It’s Donald Trump and the Republicans who should be abolished.
Should our immigration enforcement bureaucracy be reorganized or reformed in some way? I’ll leave that one to the policy wonks, but I would merely point out that we completely reorganized the immigration and customs bureaucracy a mere fifteen years ago in the wake of 9/11. I just don’t see endless reorganizations of the bureaucracy as the road to nirvana. After all, the other side has a list of government agencies they would like to abolish (EPA, Education, IRS, etc.). Does that game get us anywhere?
As to the politics, I see it as a loser across the board. Is there a single voter out there who will be more likely to vote for Democrats if we adopt the slogan “Abolish ICE?” I seriously doubt it. What it will do, though, is give Trump and the Republicans endless opportunities to portray Democrats as being opposed to all border enforcement and ready to “throw open the doors” to unlimited immigration. We are not, but a slogan like “Abolish ICE” makes it look like we are. Don’t expect nuance or subtlety from the Republicans or the media and this one.
Let’s drop what I hope is just a passing fad and keep the focus where is belongs: Abolish Donald Trump and the Republican Party.