California Democrats push for government shutdown after ICE shooting

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California Democratic lawmakers are calling on their colleagues in Congress to shut down the federal government and block more funding for immigration enforcement agencies after agents shot and killed another civilian in Minnesota over the weekend.

At least 50 Democratic senators and lawmakers – more than half of the party’s caucus in Congress – on Monday condemned the killing of Alex Pretty, a Minneapolis resident and Department of Veterans Affairs intensive care nurse who was shot by federal immigration agents on Saturday.

Lawmakers announced their solidarity with Minnesota and other cities and states that have been targeted by federal law enforcement. They criticized what they called the militarization of American cities by the Trump administration, while some wiped away tears.

The previous bipartisan spending package, which would fund the departments of defense, labor, health and human services and homeland security, awaits a vote in the US Senate, where a growing number Democrats vowed to block it.

But California lawmakers warned that Senate Democrats, many of whom represent battleground states, could cave and give Republicans the votes they need to push the measure onto President Donald Trump’s desk.

“This message is for Senator Chuck Schumer,” he said. Rep. Liz Ortega a Democrat from Hayward. “Do your job. Stand for something. Don’t quit again.”

Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas D-Salinas, called on Schumer to “step down” if he can’t keep his faction on the same page.

Rivas and his colleagues also had a message for Republican lawmakers.

“We need you to speak out. You can’t see these videos coming out of Minneapolis, Minnesota and think it’s acceptable,” Rivas said. “We need your voice, your solidarity, and your defense of American values.

In relation to the fact that Preeti was apparently carrying a permitted weapon, Assemblyman Mark Gonzalez of Los Angeles, quoted a 2018 tweet from the late Charlie Kirk which states that the Second Amendment is not for hunting or self-defense, but “to ensure that free men can defend themselves if, God forbid, the government becomes tyrannical and turns against its citizens.”

“What do you call a masked agent who kills people in the street? What do you call children who are separated from their families?” Gonzalez asked.

He noted that the National Rifle Association condemned the premature conclusions of the shooting as “dangerous and wrong.”

“Even the NRA is calling out the dangerous ignorance of federal officials trying to excuse the killing of Alex Pretty,” Gonzalez said. “When even the staunchest defenders of the Second Amendment recognize the need for accountability, we must listen.”

So far, California Republicans have mostly directed their criticism at Democrats. Republican legislative leaders avoided speaking out and referred members of the press to other Republicans when asked to testify on the issue.

El Sen. Tony Strickland R-Huntington Beach, said Democratic officials have created dangerous and unsafe conditions for both officials and civilians through so-called “asylum” policies, that prevent local and state law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration agents. They argue that these policies create risky situations where civilians like Pretti feel the need to monitor and track agents.

“Stop saying ICE agents are the Gestapo, the secret police, the Nazis,” he said. MP James Gallagher of Chico, a former Republican leader in the Assembly who recently announced his candidacy for the special election to fill the final months of the late Rep. Doug LaMalfa’s term in Congress. “This type of speech contributes to the chaos in places like Minnesota.”

Gallagher called Pretty’s death “a terrible thing” and called for an independent investigation and accountability.

The legislation calls for greater oversight of ICE

Some lawmakers are promising to introduce new measures to limit the power of federal agents.

“It’s certainly a frustrating situation because a lot of the power and authority here is in the hands of the federal government in Washington, D.C., but that doesn’t mean the answer for us is to do nothing,” he said. Rep. Jesse Gabriel Democrat from Encino.

Gabriel plans to introduce a bill that would require California’s attorney general to conduct an independent investigation into any shootings by federal immigration agents in the state. This law extends current law which already requires similar investigations into shootings by local and state law enforcement agencies. He will also co-author, along with Deputy Juan Carrillo, of a bill that would prohibit federal immigration agencies from using state resources to facilitate their operations, such as storing equipment and personnel on state property.

“We have to use every tool that we have, every legal opportunity that we have, to use our power, our authority, to consider all the different ways we can fight back,” Gabriel said.

A vote in the California Senate is also coming up this week Senate Bill 747, co-authored with Sen. Aisha Wahab of Hayward and Senator Scott Wiener a Democrat from San Francisco who is running for Speaker Emeritus Nancy Pelosi’s congressional seat. This project will allow Californians sued federal agents for civil rights violations . The bill builds on Wiener’s measure from last year, which banned federal immigration agents wear masks signed by Governor Gavin Newsom.

Wiener argues that the issue should not be biased.

“It’s really about everyone’s rights under any federal administration,” Wiener told CalMatters on Monday. “State and local law enforcement agencies are already subject to civil liability if they violate someone’s rights, and federal agents really aren’t,” he added.

“What is being sought is simply to apply the same standards to all law enforcement agencies.”