Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said Thursday that President Donald Trump is transforming Immigration and Customs Enforcement into what he described as a heavily armed force that will operate on American streets, raising concerns about increased militarization and reduced training.
Speaking on MS NOW’s “The Last Word,” Schiff outlined findings from a review of Department of Homeland Security contracting records, which he said show a sharp rise in spending on weapons and detention infrastructure tied to immigration enforcement.
Schiff said, “We wanted to go through DHS contracting records and document just how much they’re spending to militarize this new, you know, effectively new police forces, palace guard of the presidents that is wreaking such havoc in our cities. And we found dramatic increases in spending on weapons, as you said, ICE agents will be equipped with now 3 to 4 times the amount of weapons as the previous year. Customs and Border Protection doubling their expenditure on the same.”
He argued that the increased weapon purchases are occurring alongside a reduction in training for new agents, which he described as a troubling development.
He added, “I think what we’re seeing is a dangerous combination of a much more heavily armed immigration, law enforcement, complex. At the same time, we heard whistleblower testimony this week that they’ve cut the training for these new ICE agents. And they’re getting inadequate training on when to use these weapons and how to use these weapons. That is a really dangerous mix. And we wanted to sound the alarm with this report that we’re seeing the emergence of a kind of law enforcement or immigration enforcement industrial complex, because it’s not just the weapons. We’re seeing dramatic increases in expenditures on detention centers. They want to build around the country. And this is a way of gathering its own momentum. And we need to be aware of what’s happening, that we’re building a not small army now, that’s going to be policing American streets.”
{Matzav.com}
An El Al flight en route to Miami was forced to turn around Thursday afternoon and divert to Portugal due to a medical emergency involving one of the passengers — just hours after another company flight changed course because of a suspected engine malfunction.
The Miami-bound flight made a U-turn and landed at an alternate airport in Portugal after a passenger experienced a medical emergency during the journey.
In a statement, the airline said: “El Al flight LY1017 from Tel Aviv to Miami landed at an airport en route due to a medical incident involving one of the passengers. After consultation with the company physician, it was decided to land in order to evacuate her to a hospital as soon as possible.”
The company added, “After the passenger is evacuated, the flight will continue to its destination as planned. El Al places the safety and security of its passengers and crew at the top of its priorities.”
The incident occurred only hours after a separate event earlier in the day involving a flight from Tel Aviv to Boston. That flight diverted to Heathrow Airport in London following concerns about a possible technical malfunction in one of the aircraft’s engines.
The plane, which had already entered Atlantic airspace, turned around and landed in London. The airline stated that there was concern over a potential technical issue with one of the engines, possibly limited to an indicator system malfunction. However, in accordance with safety protocols, it was decided not to proceed to the original destination.
{Matzav.com}
