Feb 4, 2026 - Politics & Policy

Read: Dems outline 10 demands to GOP in ICE funding fight

Rebecca Falconer

Two men in suits with American flag pins stand at a podium with microphones. The man on the left has glasses and an orange tie, the man on the right speaks with a pink tie and raised hand. — Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (left) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Capitol Hill in January. Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and counterpart Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) released 10 policy demands to "rein in ICE" in a letter Wednesday to Republican leadership amid a standoff over DHS funding.

Why it matters: Congress members have two weeks to negotiate a deal to keep the Department of Homeland Security funded after more than 20 House Democrats voted with Republicans to reopen the government on Tuesday after a partial shutdown.

From moderates to progressives, Democrats seem adamant that changes to ICE are needed — especially in the wake of two separate fatal shootings in Minneapolis of U.S. citizens by federal agents last month.

What they're saying: "Federal immigration agents cannot continue to cause chaos in our cities while using taxpayer money that should be used to make life more affordable for working families," Schumer and Jeffries say in the letter to Senate Majority Leader John Thune and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

"The American people rightfully expect their elected representatives to take action to rein in ICE and ensure no more lives are lost."
Representatives for Thune and Johnson did not immediately respond to Axios' Wednesday night request for comment.

The big picture: Among the demands are calls for changes at Immigration and Customs Enforcement that Democrats have made for weeks, including barring ICE agents from donning masks and requiring that they wear body cameras.

Read all 10 demands in the letter in full, via DocumentCloud:

Go deeper: Dems embrace "law and order" in ICE shutdown fight

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Read: Dems outline 10 demands to GOP in ICE funding fight

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