Rep. Ami Bera demands ICE reform tied to funding, criticizing Secretary Kristi Noem's conduct while urging new leadership to prioritize due process over rights violations in San Francisco and Minneapolis. He opposes the President's potential war with Iran, arguing it lacks congressional authorization, threatens Asian allies' energy security, and inadvertently funds Vladimir Putin by lifting sanctions on Russian oil exports. Bera warns this conflict undermines Ukraine's stability despite an unacceptable Iranian counterproposal, advocating instead for direct public justification and diplomatic negotiations to ensure long-term global stability. [Automatically generated summary]
But whatever vehicle Republicans choose to fund ICE needs to have reform.
And if it doesn't have reform, it's not going to get votes on our side.
Now, I can't speak to how Senate Democrats feel on this, but I can speak to how House Democrats feel on it.
And that is overwhelmingly the sentiment that we have.
So we look forward to finding a resolution.
We look forward and are hopeful that the administration decides to engage in real reform efforts under the new secretary.
And we hope, in the meantime, that the administration chooses to fund TSA agents and other critical services that DHS provides rather than intentionally leaving them out in the cold.
Thank you so much.
This evening, President Trump will make remarks to GOP lawmakers at the National Republican Congressional Committee's annual fundraising dinner from Union Station in Washington, D.C. Watch live at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on C-SPAN.
C-SPAN now, our free mobile app, and online at c-span.org.
Back at our desk this morning, it's California Democrat Congressman Ami Barra, member of the Intelligence and Foreign Affairs Committees.
Before we get to foreign affairs, start with Homeland Security.
What are you hearing about a potential deal here to end the now 40-day-long partial government shutdown?
You hear a lot of things.
It sounds like the Senate got close to the deal.
The president was warmed to it and then kind of killed it.
And things are going back and forth.
I think we've got to get the TSA agents paid.
We've got to get most of Homeland Security funded.
Again, we've got real issues with how ICE is conducting itself.
So if you could carve that piece off of it and negotiate some of the reforms in ICE, I think you could get this done.
What would it take for you to support funding ICE again?
I mean, so we do need some customs and border protection, immigration enforcement.
But even in my hometown in San Francisco, you saw how ICE conducted themselves, grabbing a woman from Sacramento.
Like, use the warrants that you have and so forth, but conduct yourselves through due process, et cetera.
And again, I think we saw what happened in Minneapolis.
So I do think ICE has to rein itself then in terms of how they're doing these rights and conducting themselves.
Do you think Congress will or should stay in session here over these next two weeks, this recess that was supposed to happen, to get this thing solved?
I think we should get this done, yeah.
What's the path to doing that?
I mean, again, it sounded like the Senate was pretty close.
There's a bill that's over there.
If we've got our discharge petition, which funds everything outside of ICE, that's where I would start.
Bring up that vote and let's vote for it.
What are your thoughts on the new Secretary of Homeland Security, Mark Wayne Mullen?
Yeah, we came to Congress together, so I know Mark Wayne fairly well.
He is definitely heads and held above Christy Noam.
So I hope he sees how toxic Christy Noam was, makes the necessary reforms, comes up to Congress, works with us a lot of us know him in the House.
And again, I think there's a possibility to get some reform.
What makes him heads and tails against Christy Noam?
And I would note that you co-sponsored articles of impeachment against Christy Noam.
I mean, Christy Noam was pretty low bar.
Just how she conducted himself, the complete disdain for the American public as well as congressional oversight.
Again, I think Mark Wayne saw that example.
I think the president understood that Christy Noome was becoming toxic, and I think this is a chance to reset things.
Come to your Foreign Affairs Committee work.
What's your understanding right now of our objectives in this war against Iran?
The president has not articulated those objectives.
He's been all over the place.
I disagree with his decision to go to war.
I'm on the intelligence committee.
We had a chance to ask Tulsi Gabbard, ask the CIA director.
There was no imminent threat.
And thus far, there was no nuclear breakout.
They weren't days away?
They were not days away.
And if the president has data that suggests that, get on television, speak to the American people, come up to the Hill.
But as a member of Foreign Affairs and the Intelligence Committee, they failed to demonstrate that.
There was no imminent actions that the Iranian regime was going to take against American assets or the American people.
So that was not, you know, there was no imminent threat there.
These have been bad actors for over four decades.
Nothing has changed.
They have murdered military servicemen and women.
But again, there was no imminent threat to take us to a war that's costing us $2 billion a day.
You asked the Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, about this imminent threat issue and the intelligence there.
It was in a recent exchange in the intelligence committee.
Just explain what she told you.
I mean, what she told us was she presented the information to the president.
When I asked her, tell me if there was an imminent nuclear threat, she failed to answer that question.
They can't articulate why at this moment in time they took us into war with Iran.
That's totally disrupted the global economy, has impacted so many American lives.
Again, I've urged the President to go on national television, speak directly to the public, tell the public why he took us to war without congressional authorization, without coming to Congress asking for congressional support.
You know, in that back and forth with Tulsi Gabbard, I also use her words from 2020 where she said President Trump is taking us into an illegal war with Iran that is unconstitutional.
Again, if the President thinks this is a justified war, he needs to get on television and speak directly to the American public.
Have they, has the Trump administration, articulated why they need $200 billion in war funding?
They have not.
And if they can articulate that, I don't think the American people, at a time when they can't pay for their groceries, pay for health insurance, want us to give $200 billion.
Does that mean you won't support it?
Not unless he can articulate what that imminent threat is, what the goals are, what this looks like on the day after.
Again, I think he's created a mess.
And it's my job as a member of Congress to ask tough questions.
As a member of the intelligence committee, what are your thoughts on Pakistan being ready to host negotiations and off-ramp for this war?
Look, I'm glad that there's negotiations taking place.
I would prefer to work with our European allies, our Asian allies, bring them in as equal partners, because Trump has now created a mess.
We are where we are, so we can go back and re-litigate the war, but we've got a mess on our hands right now.
How do we solve this?
How do we create some stability?
How do we get the straits open again so you can get energy flows going?
That is going to take a long-term proposition.
I understand the Iranians have made a counterproposal, which is totally unacceptable, which says they can have all the missiles they want.
They can enrich uranium, hands-off Hezbollah.
That is worse than where we started.
So I still think there's a long way to go here.
I know you're the top Democrat on the East Asia and Pacific subcommittee when it comes to foreign affairs.
How are countries in that region viewing this latest U.S. conflict in the Middle East?
What should we know about what they're thinking about this?
Yeah, I've talked to the Koreans, I've talked to the Japanese and our allies in Asia.
They're very dependent on energy flows, natural gas that comes out of the Middle East.
That has all but stopped coming out.
It is impacting their economy.
It is impacting their ability to build the semiconductors and things that they need to.
You worry about that with Taiwan.
So this is a real issue, and it is at a time when the global economy still is pretty fragile.
This was the last thing that the world needed.
And then move to another region.
I know there's a large Ukrainian population in your district.
What has this conflict in Iran meant for the ongoing war in Ukraine and how much attention that is getting and what we should be watching for there?
I mean, what it has done is it's empowered Vladimir Putin.
I mean, when the president has said, okay, we're going to lift sanctions on Russian energy and oil exports, that doesn't help the Ukrainian people.
That helps Vladimir Putin fund this illegal war.
Again, this is a mess.
This was poorly thought out.
I think the president felt emboldened after Venezuela went relatively smoothly, and he didn't see much aftermath after that.
Again, I think this was ill-conceived, should never have happened.
Our military's performing the job that's in front of them.
Iran Conflict Impact00:02:07
So it's not about the military, but it is about President Trump and his decision-making.
Ami Barras, our guest Democrat from California, C-SPAN viewers know him well, maybe even from one of those student cam competitions, those student documentaries.
He's appeared in a few of those.
He's here this morning to take your phone calls.
202-748-8000 for Democrats.
Republicans, 202-748-8001.
Independents, 202-748-8002.
We've got him for about another 20, 25 minutes before he has to go start his day on Capitol Hill.
This is Roberta in San Diego, Republican line.
Good morning.
Hi, Mr. Barrett.
First off, I have spoken with your office as well, but I would like to ask you several questions, actually, and all of them are important questions.
Can you give me one or two, Roberta?
Yes.
First off, why is California a sanctuary state?
Well, Roberta, we've always been a state that's welcomed immigrants.
I think it's okay for us to work with immigration and customs agents, identifying criminals and others.
I really wish that Congress would come together and reform our immigration system, create a legal immigration system.
You have a whole bunch of folks that have been here.
Perhaps they did come here in an undocumented capacity, but they're contributing to society.
Your neighbors and others.
If they're not at risk, if they're not criminals, I think we should figure out a way to let them come out of the shadows.
And Roberta, because you're so kind enough to be concise, what's your second question?
Yeah, my second question is this.
How did San Diego become the second largest city in California?
I guess the beautiful weather that you have there, I mean, it's 70 degrees year-round.
So I think a lot of people want to live there.
That's Roberta in San Diego this morning.
There's a lot going on on Capitol Hill.
What are you going to be focusing on today when you do get up there, when you leave the studio?
Yeah, obviously, I hope we have a chance to open up the government and get the TSA workers and others funded.
Again, those negotiations are ongoing, so we'll see where we are.
Working With New Members00:00:57
In terms of who you work with best up on Capitol Hill, it's a question we've been asking a lot lately as viewers are concerned about too much animosity on Capitol Hill.
Who's a member of Congress that you work with the best?
You know, right now there's a freshman member that in a lot of conversations with Jefferson Shreve from Indiana.
I think he's a really good member, thoughtful.
You know, we work with a lot of the Californians, Vince Fong, others.
You know, our motto in our office is we're friends with everyone.
I recognize that we may have different views, but we're all a reflection of the folks that vote for us.
Six terms on Capitol Hill.
Why is it a freshman member that you seem to be working well with?
I mean, you try to get out there and get to know the new members that are out there, try to understand what their districts are like.
It's easy for us to work with fellow Democrats.
I think it's necessary for us to understand the Republican members.
What is it that this freshman member understands about you or that you understand about them?