Elected representatives say they aren’t interested if their constituents are detained by federal immigration officials.
On Capitol Hill Wednesday, South Carolina Representative Ralph Norman, Texas Representative Troy Nehls, and Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville brushed off reports that American citizens were being targeted by ICE agents in overzealous raids.
“Congressman, do you care if U.S. citizens accidentally get detained in ICE raids?” Migrant Insider’s Pablo Manríquez asked each of them.
“No, I’m not concerned about that,” confessed Norman, underscoring that he was “so appreciative” of border czar Tom Homan’s actions to force undocumented immigrants out of the country en masse.
“I’m concerned about law and order in America. If you’re an illegal, you don’t need to be here,” Norman said, apparently forgetting that ICE has no authority to arrest, detain, or deport U.S. citizens.
“But what if you’re a citizen?… It just seems to be happening a lot,” pressed Manríquez.
But Norman said he doesn’t “believe that,” highlighting concerns about alleged undocumented gang members in the country when Manríquez cited reports that U.S. veterans are getting dragged into ICE’s deportation machine.
Congressman, do you care if U.S. citizens accidentally get detained in ICE raids? RALPH NORMAN: “No, I’m not concerned about that.” pic.twitter.com/SuEh44nIRf
— Pablo Manríquez (@PabloReports) July 16, 2025
At least one veteran has so far been detained by the aggressive agency: George Retes, a 25-year-old disabled veteran, was detained on July 10 while at work on a California farm. He was held for three days by ICE officials without access to legal representation and without any charges against him, according to Representative Pramila Jayapal’s office.
Jayapal introduced legislation Wednesday—the “Stop ICE from Kidnapping US Citizens Act”—to make ICE’s illegal actions even more blatant. The measure would prevent ICE from detaining and deporting U.S. citizens following reports that the agency had been harassing the country’s Latino population, requesting on-demand proof of citizenship.
But Norman isn’t the only lawmaker to disregard the alarming cases. Nehls attempted to undermine the traumatizing nature of detention when asked if he cared about the arrested citizens, telling Manríquez that the media shouldn’t “spin” detention for “more than it really is.”
“Are you detained for more than three days?” Nehls asked rhetorically, waving his cigar.
“In some cases, yeah,” responded Manríquez.
“Well, maybe people can’t prove that they’re American citizens, either, have the documentation,” Nehls said, apparently at a loss for words, though he did mention that he believed Homan was doing a “hell of a job.”
“It’s not a big problem. It really, really isn’t,” Nehls added.
Congressman, do you care of U.S. citizens are accidentally detained by ICE?TROY NEHLS: pic.twitter.com/RkpN5fk41w
— Pablo Manríquez (@PabloReports) July 16, 2025
Tuberville’s sensitive advice to Americans concerned about being illegally detained by plainclothed undercover ICE agents was simple: “First of all, don’t put yourself in a situation where that happens.”
“I’m sure with the illegals we have in this country, some mistakes happen, that always—that’s gone happen,” Tuberville said, before directing Americans to disengage from undocumented communities. “But if you are gonna be hanging around people who are not citizens of this country, some things like that are going to probably happen.”
“Don’t hang around illegals,” he warned.
Tuberville had no advice for mixed-status families.
Senator, do you care if US citizens accidentally get detained in ICE raids?TOMMY TUBBERVILLE: pic.twitter.com/SmvjFd0UQa
— Pablo Manríquez (@PabloReports) July 16, 2025
The post MAGA Republican Says He Doesn’t Care If ICE Detains U.S. Citizens appeared first on New Republic.
