U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., issued a statement Friday criticizing Senate Republicans for passing a partisan budget bill that allocates more than $70 billion to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection without accountability measures.
Luján, a member of the Senate Budget Committee, said the legislation ignores the financial struggles of American families dealing with rising costs for health care, groceries, gas and housing.
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“Instead of focusing on lowering costs for families, my Republican colleagues just handed more than $70 billion to an out-of-control ICE and CBP while doing nothing for Americans struggling to make ends meet,” Luján said in the statement.
The debate over border enforcement funding follows earlier negotiations this year. In late March, Senate Republicans had agreed to Democratic demands to fund the Department of Homeland Security without ICE operations, though House approval remained uncertain at the time. Both Luján and Martin Heinrich, New Mexico’s other U.S. Senator, withheld their votes then while demanding ICE accountability.
Luján criticized the current bill for handing billions to the agencies without implementing reforms or oversight. He pointed to the deaths of two American citizens, which he attributed to ICE and CBP under President Donald Trump and Stephen Miller, arguing that the new funding rewards the agencies while leaving struggling families behind.
During the budget process, Luján supported several amendments aimed at lowering costs for New Mexico families and addressing corruption. However, Senate Republicans blocked the proposals. Luján accused his colleagues of catering to the president’s personal interests, including protecting a $1.8 billion fund the senator described as a “criminal slush fund.”
“This is a betrayal of New Mexico families,” Luján said.