Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez suggests dissolving Department Homeland Security

[DonViejo]

BY EMILY TILLETT

JULY 10, 2019 / 9:46 AM / CBS NEWS

As Democrats continue to decry the Trump administration's strict immigration policies, calling for agencies like the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be disbanded, freshman Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is going one step further, suggesting that the Department of Homeland Security should be broken up.

During an interview with The New Yorker Radio Hour's David Remnick, Ocasio-Cortez appeared to blame the Bush administration for initially forming the agency back in 2002 in the wake of the terrorist attacks on September 11th.

"I feel like we are, at a very, it's a very qualified and supported position, at least in terms of evidence, and in terms of being able to make the argument that we never should've created DHS in the early 2000s," said Ocasio-Cortez. She went on to say that she supported abolishing ICE, a common rallying cry among House Democrats.

"Would you get rid of the Department of Homeland Security, too?" Remnick asked.

"I think so," she replied. "I think we need to undo a lot of the egregious mistakes that the Bush administration did."

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https://www.cbsnews.com/news/alexandria-ocasio-cortez-suggests-dissolving-department-homeland-security-amid-detention-concerns/

[lapucelle]

1. "egregious mistakes that [they] did" N/T

[shanny]

2. She's right again.

Never liked "Homeland Security"--the name alone evokes authoritarian overtones (the Fatherland, Mother Russia, ugh); didn't like the circumstances when it was pushed through (capitalizing on the crisis), any of it. Don't like the umbrella "National Security!" crap applied to everything. Some things just need to be thrown out and re-made. That includes CBP and ICE--shut them down, fire everyone and start over.

[Autumn]

3. It can't be fixed. Get rid of it

[Proud Liberal Dem]

4. She's not wrong

[zipplewrath]

8. It was mostly a reorganizing

Truth is, the vast majority of DHS was merely a reorganization of existing organizations. ICE is probably one of the few exceptions in that there was no department that ONLY did immigration enforcement. But I never really understood why much of this wasn't just put under the FBI, or maybe the Coast Guard.

[Sgent]

12. The reorganizing was fine

but the creation of ICE and HSI was a mistake. TSA and Federal Air Marshals are needed, and are probably OK where they are. They should move the currency fraud issues back to Treasury, but maybe keep the protective detail in DHS.

[pecosbob]

5. And the Patriot Act needs to go away

We need to dismantle the Republicans' administration built on the culture of fear. How many years now has the country been on orange alert? They want us to be afraid...

[Ace Rothstein]

10. Don't forget the AUMF.

Repeal that shit tomorrow.

[Bettie]

6. She's not wrong

all of this was lumped together under W. Frankly, dividing it up offers greater opportunity for appropriate oversight.

[ElementaryPenguin]

7. I'm liking AOC more every day!

[Doctor Howard]

9. A leftover albatross from the Bush regime

toss it in the bin.

[Hotler]

11. Chop it up and scatter it. Remember when the neocons rolled out the patriot act and...

and cheney said "if you have nothing to hide" blah blah blah. People say "Never forget", dah, never forget what the neocaons did to us.