Executive Director of @AILANational. The views expressed here are my personal opinions. RT ≠ Endorsements.
Washington, DC
Joined July 2011
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Shocking that people are being taken into the basement of a building that ICE uses as a detention site that is now doubling as an immigration court. Gratitude to @SenAlexPadilla for uncovering how deportations are happening under a shroud, behind closed doors.
NEW: I made an unannounced visit to an ICE holding facility in downtown Los Angeles as the administration reportedly launches its 45-day immigration surge.
While there, I learned that court proceedings are being held in the facility’s basement, which raises serious concerns. I also met someone searching for a family member detained outside an elementary school, where agents smashed a car window, even though the family member had authorization to remain in the country.
We deserve answers about what’s happening behind closed doors. I’ll keep showing up to demand accountability and ensure people in detention are treated with dignity and have access to basic necessities and legal counsel.
Los Angeles AILA attorneys are reporting that ICE is running the show at this hidden LA court and at previously undisclosed & difficult to access locations.
Due process and justice cannot happen in darkness. Accountability cannot exist behind closed doors. More elected leaders must visit courts and ICE detention sites. youtu.be/ni6Sn_LnMmU?si=XsYa…
AILA supports Rep. Chu's letter focused on an issue of upmost concern: demanding answers about rising immigration bond denials, increasingly unaffordable bond amounts & concerns about the independence of immigration judges under the Trump administration. chu.house.gov/media-center/p…
At a time when families are struggling with affordability and rising healthcare costs, taxpayers are being asked to foot the bill for the unnecessary detention of people who have lived in our communities for decades.
ICE officers fired multiple rounds at a vehicle during an enforcement operation in NYC, with a 5-year-old child reportedly in the back seat. A system that puts children, families & entire communities in the path of this kind of violence is a system that demands scrutiny.
This latest incident underscores the urgent need to examine how immigration enforcement is being carried out in communities across the country. A better way is possible. AILA outlines tangible steps we can take: aila.org/library/a-better-wa…
Need to see the details, but this announcement, if true and as sweeping as it suggests, will land a blow on the America's economy, competitiveness, and the public's pockets. nbcnews.com/politics/trump-a…
Our gratitude @RepGregStanton for joining. His leadership on the emergence of hidden immigration courts is vital in the fight for transparency & access to justice. AILA urges elected leaders to exercise their legal right & witness firsthand the chaos in our country's courtrooms.
Congressman Greg Stanton (D-AZ) joined AILA for a virtual press briefing examining the use of previously undisclosed or difficult to access locations, including FEMA facilities, to conduct immigration court proceedings. youtu.be/I9ReiAi1il0
As Xi Jinping arrives in Washington, the U.S. is focused on competing with China for technological leadership. But Trump's immigration policies are pushing the scientists, engineers, and entrepreneurs we need out & directly to the hands of our competitors. insidehighered.com/news/facu…
As the AI race pushes ahead, we need to focus on responsible and safe use of AI. That's why we need the best and brightest minds working to guide us. But Trump Admin policies are continuing to make it harder for the best and brightest build a future here. straitstimes.com/asia/south-…
Trump has renewed his $100k fee on new H-1B workers & ordered agencies to scrutinize H-1B petitions more heavily. We expect a wave of evidence demands and denials and these policies are already making America less competitive on the world stage. forbes.com/sites/stuartander…
H1-B restrictions are hampering our competitiveness in AI and boosting China. International students make up 75–80% of full-time grad students in AI-related fields at US universities. We train them here, then slam the door, incentivizing them to go elsewhere.
There is a better way forward. We deserve an immigration system that dynamically calibrates to workforce needs, strengthens American competitiveness, and ensures that critical industries can meet consumer demand. Here is how: aila.org/library/a-better-wa…
An ICE officer's shooting of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez in Austin is the latest in a disturbing pattern of enforcement actions resulting in serious injury & death: at least 22 people shot by on-duty ICE & CBP agents during the 2nd Trump Admin, 8 fatally. texastribune.org/2026/09/20/…
ICE is operating w/ unprecedented resources, expanded authority & a political mandate prioritizing aggressive enforcement over accountability. If Congress is serious about restoring public trust, thorough oversight of ICE's conduct & accountability systems should be top priority.
AILA continues to call on Congress to demand accountability and reforms that ensure the nation’s immigration agencies operate in a fair, lawful, and humane manner and bring order and safety to American communities. aila.org/advocacy-tools/poli…
