Progressive Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich., exploded on U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott, calling federal immigration officers “thugs” and telling the commissioner he “better hope” for a presidential pardon during a particularly heated House hearing on Tuesday.
Thanedar, who is originally from India and immigrated to the U.S. in the 1980’s, drilled into Scott, saying, “You better hope you get pardoned because you will be held accountable for the absolute disregard of the law your agencies have shown over the past year.”
The exchange occurred during a House Homeland Security hearing on “Oversight of the Department of Homeland Security: ICE, CBP, and USCIS.” During the hearing, Thanedar grilled Scott and Acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons on the recent shooting of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal officers in Minnesota.
After Lyons and Scott repeatedly backed their officers through Thanedar’s questioning, the congressman said, “I have heard and seen enough. I’m just sick and tired of your agents running around in our cities, in our streets, causing illegal activities, ICE thugs attacking our communities, using our children as bait, referring to people as bodies and numbers, targeting people for their accents and the color of their skin, and killing American citizens, all while showing zero remorse for their actions.”
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Going further, Thanedar asked, “Director Lyons and Commissioner Scott, do you think President Trump will pardon you and your boss, Kristi Noem, before he leaves office, just like he has for insurrectionists and his political allies? Do you believe President Trump will pardon you?”
Scott answered, “I’m not going to speak on behalf of President Trump, but I’ll tell you, I signed up for this job to protect America, and I’m very proud of the service that I provide, and I don’t need a pardon from anybody.”
“Well, you’d better hope so. You better hope you get pardoned,” Thanedar shot back. “Because you will be held accountable for the absolute disregard of the law your agencies have shown over the past year.”
Thanedar continued, “Your agencies have lost the trust of the American people, with millions taking to the streets to protect the illegal actions of your agencies. And that’s why I introduced a bill in the United States Congress to abolish ICE. ICE must be abolished.”
The congressman added that he “also co-sponsored a bill to impeach” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, saying, “I believe Kristi Noem must be impeached, and this Congress must do everything in its power to carry out oversight actions against these rogue departments.”
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Before Thanedar finished, Homeland Security Committee Chair Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., cut in, saying, “The gentleman’s time is expired” and calling the hearing into recess.
