Rep. Troy Carter Blasts Trump Immigration Policies as 'State-Sanctioned Trauma'

Critique of Republican Budget and Immigration Proposals

• 🎯 The current markup is not about securing the border but about cutting taxes for the wealthy and gutting essential programs like Medicaid and SNAP.
• ⚠️ In South Louisiana alone, nearly 300,000 people on Medicaid, including 130,000 children and 33,000 seniors, are at risk of losing healthcare.
• 💰 Republican colleagues are prioritizing giveaways to billionaires over the needs of everyday Americans struggling with rising costs and healthcare access.

Legislative Malpractice and Due Process Concerns

• 🔍 Congressional Republicans have failed in their oversight duties by pushing a massive bill with no hearings or testimony on DHS's actual budget needs.
• ⚖️ The bill is criticized for supercharging an extreme mass deportation agenda, leading to dangerous rises in forced disappearances of immigrants without due process.
• 🗣️ Speaking out against perceived injustices, even without being convicted of a crime, should not be a deportable offense, as it is protected by the First Amendment.

Case Study: Makhmoud Khalil

• 📍 Makhmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident and student, was detained after peaceful pro-Palestinian advocacy, despite stating he is against terrorism and Hamas.
• 💔 Khalil was denied the request to attend his son's birth while detained, highlighting the heartbreaking human cost of these policies.
• 🎤 His case exemplifies individuals being detained and deported for exercising their First Amendment rights, posting on social media, or seeking a better life, not for violating immigration laws.

State-Sanctioned Trauma and Constitutional Betrayal

• 🚨 Advocacy groups and legal experts document a pattern of retaliation against immigrants who speak out, using immigration enforcement as a weapon to silence dissent.
• 🇺🇸 The First Amendment protects everyone on U.S. soil, regardless of immigration status, and allowing political expression to become a deportable offense is an un-American and unconstitutional betrayal of democratic values.
• 💔 In a particularly egregious case, US-born citizen children, including a four-year-old battling cancer, were removed from the country and sent to Honduras, which Carter describes as state-sanctioned trauma.
• 📊 Public opinion polls indicate that Americans do not support ripping families apart or criminalizing speech, but rather believe in the rule of law and due process.
• 🙏 Carter urges colleagues to look beyond political talking points and do what is right for the American people.