Jeffries says Trump unleashed an 'unprecedented flood of extremism'
Hakeem Jeffries doesn't dismiss calls to 'defund ICE,' says they're going after 'law-abiding' immigrants
House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries didn't dismiss calls from other members of his party to defund ICE and said the enforcement agency was going after "law-abiding immigrant families" during an interview on "The View."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said Monday during an interview on "The View" that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was going after "law-abiding immigrant families," and didn't dismiss calls from other members of his party to defund it.
"The View" co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin pressed Jeffries on whether he supported calls to defund ICE and if it was an effective message for Democrats heading into the 2026 midterms.
"Well, I definitely think that we need aggressive oversight as it relates to the overly aggressive behavior that we’re seeing from ICE, from the Department of Homeland Security," he told the hosts.
"Donald Trump and Republicans promised to go after violent felons, but instead they’re going after law-abiding immigrant families. And in fact, in some cases, deporting American citizens and children, some with cancer. And America is better than this, and that’s the reality," Jeffries continued.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries joined the co-hosts of "The View" on Monday, July 7, 2025. (ABC/TheView)
Jeffries also responded to a question from co-host Ana Navarro, who pressed him on what he would say to Latinos who feel hopeless about the Trump administration's immigration policies.
"We are seeing sort of an unprecedented flood of extremism being unleashed on the American people and it’s happened from the very beginning," he said of Trump.
"But I think we can never lose hope in the resilience of the American people to face turbulence, and this is an incredibly turbulent moment, but to power our way through it and to come out stronger on the other side. It’s not to say it’s going to be easy. It will be challenging, but I still believe in the fundamental goodness of the American people," Jeffries added.
Residents surround federal and Border Patrol agents who plan their escape after an immigrant raid on Atlantic Blvd. in the city of Bell on June 19, 2025. (Getty Images)
Jeffries said it was important to secure the border, but also said Congress needed to fix the broken immigration system.
He told the co-hosts, "As House Democrats, our view is that while we work on making sure that the border can remain secure, while we work to fix our broken immigration system, we also are going to stand up for dreamers, farm workers and for law-abiding immigrant families at all times."
Hanna Panreck is an associate editor at Fox News.
