ADRIAN FLORIDO, HOST:
The Trump administration's aggressive immigration crackdown targeting undocumented people is also sweeping up U.S. citizens.
GEORGE RETES: They dragged me out of the car, and I'm not trying to fight. I'm not trying to resist. And I could provide proof I'm a citizen. They didn't care.
FLORIDO: George Retes was arrested by immigration agents in July and held for three days, the Department of Homeland Security said he grew violent and refused to comply. He denied that and has not been charged with a crime. Retes is one of at least 170 U.S. citizens who have been arrested or detained by immigration agents since President Trump took office. That's according to a ProPublica report. NPR has not independently confirmed that tally. Congressman Robert Garcia and Senator Richard Blumenthal, both Democrats, have announced an investigation into these detentions. Earlier today, I reached Representative Garcia of California, the ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, on his way to the airport.
What are you looking for in your investigation?
ROBERT GARCIA: Well, I think, first, it's pretty clear that what's happening right now is just completely outrageous. Not only are we seeing, of course, these arrests and these detentions of people that are working at car washes or hardware stores and other places. We're also seeing the - people being detained that are U.S. citizens, and in some cases for days without any sort of due process or access to legal representation. And so it is incredibly concerning that now anyone can be targeted. And it's very apparent that a lot of this is being done because of race or ethnicity. We have numerous questions of the administration. Why is this happening? How is this being funded? Why isn't due process and the Constitution being followed? And so it's important that we begin documenting all of this and also talking and speaking directly with those that are being detained.
FLORIDO: Well, as a member of the Democratic minority in Congress, you don't have subpoena power, so how are you going to compel the Trump administration to give you the information you're after, including the names of people who are citizens who've been detained?
GARCIA: Look, obviously, I think being in the minority does limit us, certainly on investigations and the ability to subpoena, but it does not stop our ability and efforts to collect information, talk to witnesses, put things on the record, ensure that we have an accounting of what's actually going on. I mean, one of the things that we're going to do, for example, is we're going to keep a very detailed record of when this is happening, where this is happening and - to ensure that we're doing our constitutional duty of oversight.
FLORIDO: This week, you announced that your committee will also be launching an online ICE tracker so that people can keep track of where immigration agents are operating across the country. Attorney General Pam Bondi accused you of putting ICE agents at risk with this effort. What's your response to that?
GARCIA: Well, first, to be clear, this is a misconduct tracker that documents civil rights violations by the administration. Yeah. It includes, you know, cases where ICE has detained U.S. citizens, of course. This is not a live location tracker. This is not putting officers at risk. We're publishing records after the fact to expose any patterns of misconduct. And so it's - this is not tracking anyone or putting out officers' names. This is about documenting something that's already happened. So they're creating a fake controversy.
FLORIDO: Congressman, you're launching all of these efforts even as a Supreme Court has appeared to give the Trump administration, at least for now, you know, broad authority to carry out its immigration operations, including by allowing agents to continue using factors like people's race and accents as they go out looking for folks they suspect of being in the country illegally. And I wonder whether you think that your investigation will actually make a difference.
GARCIA: Absolutely. I mean, look, we're talking to folks across the country, and they want accountability. And we also need to document the violation of due process, the violation of the Constitution. The kind of inhumanity that we're seeing across the country also needs to be documented by the U.S. Congress. I think this is a way for the Senate and the House to work together on this issue. The reality is that what Pam Bondi is doing and what Kristi Noem doing is beyond horrific. It is un-American. And most folks that you talk to, including Republicans and independents, will tell you this is not what they were expecting. And this idea that now anyone, including a United States citizen, could be detained and thrown into a detention center should concern every single person. And so I think the work ahead is going to be very important, and accountability for the future will also be critical.
FLORIDO: I've been speaking with Democratic Representative Robert Garcia of California. Congressman, thank you.
GARCIA: Thank you.
FLORIDO: In a statement, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said allegations that DHS law enforcement engages in racial profiling are disgusting, reckless and categorically false. She also said that anyone who actively obstructs law enforcement will face consequences. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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