Ramirez to Noem: “YOU are not fit to hold the office, and I, again, - to your face - demand your resignation.”
Washington, DC — Today, Congresswoman Delia C. Ramirez (IL-03) demanded Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s resign after confirming her understanding of her constitutional duties and confronting her with her unconstitutional, illegal weaponization of DHS to pursue a campaign of persecution, mass incarceration, and deportation.
During her questioning of Secretary Noem, Congresswoman Ramirez slammed Noem for profiling and dehumanizing individuals, betraying the constitutional commitment to due process, undermining court orders, breaking the law, engaging in corruption, and weaponizing the immigration system to violate our civil rights.
Video of Ramirez's remarks here.
Remarks as prepared for delivery:
Do you agree that the Judiciary is a coequal branch of government, and it is your obligation as a member of the Executive Branch to honor decisions made by the highest court of the land? Yes or no.
Do you agree that Congress is a coequal branch of government, and it is your obligation as a member of the Executive Branch to honor legislation and appropriations duly authorized by Congress? Yes or no
Do you agree that Article 1 of the Constitution gives Congress the power of the purse? Yes or no
Do you believe you have the power to disregard Congressional appropriations and unilaterally repurpose funds that have been duly appropriated by Congress? Yes or no.
Since you have been Secretary, you have repeatedly disregarded the law. You have illegally impounded funds that Congress appropriated, and your branch of government must implement pursuant to the law. Yet…
You closed offices established in law, including the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, the Office of the Immigration Detention Ombudsman, and the Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman.
You cancelled contracts for programs authorized in law, including shelter and services programs, and citizenship and integration grants.
You obstructed and roughed up Members of this committee as they conducted Congressional oversight.
You redirected funds to terrorize our communities, create taxpayer-funded political propaganda campaigns, and hold sick, disrespectful press conferences in my state, where let me be clear, you are not welcome.
You corruptly used emergency authority to avoid procurement to make Trump’s private prison donors richer by directing $45 billion to them for expanded ICE detention centers.
You defunded work to address real threats to the Homeland, while you pursue the college newspaper editor, labor leaders, and a Harvard scientist who failed to declare frog embryos at the airport.
Clearly, we don’t have time for all my questions, so I will be submitting questions to the record that I expect you and the Administration to answer.
Here is my final question: When you took your oath did you swear to support and defend the Constitution of the United States? Yes or no.
See, I find that laughable. You don’t behave like someone who takes that oath seriously. Let me tell you why…
We don’t live in a dictatorship or a monarchy. Trump’s will is not the guiding doctrine of the nation, and our country is not a playground for his and your twisted authoritarian fantasies.
We are a democracy. We defend the Constitution, and we affirm the rule of law. We respect the co-equal branches of government, and we uphold our rights, even when we disagree. The foundation of our nation is based on a core set of constitutional rights, upon which our prosperity, pluralism, and peace depend.
You, however, have been leading this work for 110 days. And in that time, you have profiled and dehumanized our neighbors, betrayed our constitutional commitment to due process, undermined the courts, broken the law, engaged in corruption, and weaponized the immigration system to violate our civil rights. As Senator Murphy stated, your department is out of control, and as their leader, YOU are responsible. YOU have betrayed the sacred fundamentals of your oath; YOU are not fit to hold the office, and I, again, - to your face - demand your resignation and place that request on the record.
Mr Chairman, I yield back. “
For the full text of the letter demanding Noem’s resignation, CLICK HERE.