The House passage this week of a
tax cut and spending bill that
enacts President Donald Trump's
agenda does so by adding
some two and a half trillion dollars
to the national debt over 10 years.
That's after cutting more than a
trillion dollars in social safety
net programs like Medicaid and
food aid.
The bill also beefs up spending
on immigration enforcement.
Billions of dollars for more ICE
officers and the border wall, for
example.
And it includes things like a $1,000
fee on migrants seeking asylum.
On immigration policy, as it affects
Wisconsin, we turn for reaction
to Darrell Modin, who's
national president of Forward
Latino.
He joins us from Milwaukee.
And thanks very much for being here.
Well, thank you for having me here
today.
So passage of the bill, as you know,
was not without kind of Republican
infighting over its provisions.
But what is your reaction to what's
in it around immigration?
Well, we're continuing to see an
attack on our immigrant community,
which we know has so many
impacts our
state in so many different ways
from the
workforce.
Labor force shortage that we have
right now in the state of Wisconsin
to the very social fabric
tearing apart people tearing
apart families.
And we're talking about people for
the majority who are worshiping in
our pews working in our shops,
helping pick our food and care for
our parents.
So it's going to continue to have a
profound impact on our state here.
What can we understand about
the numbers of immigrants in
Wisconsin who have come in contact
with ICE?
Well, fortunately, the
ICE offices in the state of
Wisconsin do not have the
resources that we know they wish
they had. So we've seen a
slight uptick in the number of
detentions, but the ones that have
happened have been very high
profile, such as
the detentios that have taken place
in courthouses,
for instance.
And that was a practice that under
Democratic and Republican
administrations before.
Was strictly banned because they
realized the impact that would have
on public safety.
But sadly, things have changed with
this administration.
Yes, because perhaps
the most visible arrest in Wisconsin
was that of Milwaukee Judge Hannah
Dugan charged with
allegedly helping a man
evade arrest by ICE
agents, and it was
shown in a photo released
by FBI Director Kash Patel.
What do you make of that case?
Well, sadly, I fear that
the FBI
and the folks working
there are not being led
well.
That issue seems to be more one
about garnering headlines and trying
to intimidate the courts
than doing anything to improve
public safety.
What's been rather surprising
and welcoming to
see is that so many people
on both the liberal and conservative
sides.
Are actually donating to
the judge's campaign to fund
her legal
representation.
And in fact, she's being represented
by two of the most conservative
attorneys, well-credentialed
conservative attorneys in the state.
So I think everybody's coming
together and said it's important not
only to defend her, but more
importantly, defend the Constitution
and the separation of powers between
the executive branch and the
judiciary.
And yet, when people you advocate
for see a judge arrested,
what do they think about their own
protections?
Well, there's, I'm not going
to deny it, there is tremendous
concern out there right now.
With all of the policies and
rules that are changing outside
of the normal channels, we're
seeing individuals across the
country, even those lawfully present
in the United States, being detained
and deported without any
due process whatsoever.
And what I think should concern
every American is that a
lot of those detentions and
deportations have taken place
despite court orders.
Saying that they were not to
move forward and they were not to
occur. So not
only is this an immigration issue,
but it's quickly becoming a
constitutional issue as well.
We know this week that the U.S.
Supreme Court allowed Donald Trump
to revoke Venezuela's
protected status as that
case proceeds.
What is your and others' reaction to
that?
Oh, there's a tremendous amount of
fear and,
but I think more importantly, a
feeling of betrayal among so
many in the Venezuelan community
whose vote was literally
courted by the administration's
campaign, you know,
accusing our previous president of
being a dictator,
much in the
framework of the current
leader of Venezuela.
And then to see what is happening
today, they are completely dismayed
and disappointed and
enraged and fearful,
because many of them are gonna be
returned under these conditions to
an oppressive regime and
will feel those repercussions
in a very serious way.
When you consider all of the kinds
of ways that the administration
wants to sweep immigrants from our
shores and prevent new immigrants
from coming here, what stands out
the most?
Well, being a person of faith,
I can tell you that's the first
thing here.
I think that if here the
administration has taken an all
stick approach to this, it
doesn't have to be one or the other.
For years, we've advocated with
others such as former speaker,
Paul Ryan.
And the late, great
Senator John McCain.
We've advocated for immigration
reform that would not only
meet our country's
security and economic concerns
and requirements, but would allow us
to fulfill the
tenets of our faith and to be the
defenders of humanity.
So we know we can have all
three. They're not mutually
exclusive.
Daryl Modine, thanks very much for
joining us.
Thank you.
I hope you didn't pick up my phone
right here. I just got some override
text that made a little
noise. Did you pick up on that?
Did you pick up on that, no?
No, we didn't.
In fact, my watch also did something
similar, but I think we're good.
Okay.
Ha ha
Maybe so I hope there's something in
there you can use
Do you want me to talk about it from
a federal perspective or from a
state perspective?
Um,
let me say that we are on the record
of supporting a P 50,
uh, assembly bill
a B 57 that would
ban, um,
federal officials and,
um state officials
from assisting them and going into
sensitive sites.
And those sensitive sites include
locations such as schools,
hospitals, houses of worship and
courthouses because we know the
negative impact they'll have in the
community, the fear they'll create.
And adverse the fact that they have
on public safety.
And when it comes to the houses of
worship, I think everyone can agree,
regardless of what side of that
aisle you're on, that our
country should take the protection
to worship when and where you
want very seriously.
So we're on record in supporting
that, and we hope it does get the
traction and the boats it deserves
into assembly.
Thank you very much.
Anything else I can do, just let me
know and I wish all of you a
wonderful holiday weekend.
Thank you, and to you as well.
Thank you.