Liberal activists and a vocal faction of Democratic politicians want to abolish the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE). Former congressman and failed Senate candidate Beto O'Rourke, however, is not on board.
Univision anchor Jorge Ramos repeatedly pressed O'Rourke during a recent interview in the candidate's "native Spanish," but O'Rourke refused to join the ranks of the #AbolishICE movement.
"You are the only candidate that lives in the border area. You have said that ICE is a deportation force. Would you abolish ICE as president?" Ramos asked.
O'Rourke initially dodged the question, saying he wanted to abolish the ICE's practices of deporting millions of American immigrants and splitting up families. When Ramos asked a second time whether he would abolish the agency, O'Rourke said he wouldn't, but would like to see ICE reform its deportation policies.
"If there are violent people in our communities, yes we need to deport them," he said. "But if we want to safeguard our communities, we don't need ICE, we need immigration reform."
Gracias a @jorgeramosnews por la entrevista acerca de los retos que enfrentamos como país y como juntos podemos resolverlos. pic.twitter.com/vEBBw8O1kX
— Beto O'Rourke (@BetoORourke) May 3, 2019
Most Democratic voters are inclined to agree with O'Rourke's position, according to a 2018 poll, when the #AbolishICE movement was gaining momentum. The poll found that just 25 percent of Democrats favored abolishing the agency. A number of Democratic presidential candidates, including Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D., N.Y.), Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), and Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) expressed support for getting rid of the agency at the time, while others, such as Sen. Kamala Harris (D., Calif.), have declined to fully embrace that position.