Democrats' "suicidal empathy" on immigration will "destroy our country," a Republican senator warned after his proposal targeting sanctuary city policies was included in the reconciliation package funding Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP).In a Tuesday interview with Fox News Digital, Sen.Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., argued that Democrats' approach to immigration is also driven by political self-interest and not entirely by the desire for moral high-ground. "There's an electoral play here.
It's about raw power," he said.Schmitt's provision, which was included in the House-passed funding package Tuesday, would provide $350 million for ICE agents to arrest criminal illegal immigrants after their release from state or local custody.It comes as law enforcement in sanctuary states and cities continue to refuse to cooperate with federal officials.Sen.
Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., blamed "leftists" for the rise in political violence while questioning FBI Director Kash Patel during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing in the Hart Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Sept.16, 2025.
Schmitt referenced the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk and said, "Don't give me this both sides bullshit!" while attributing most political violence in the U.S.to liberal politicians, groups and individuals.
(Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)Schmitt also warned that failing to deport illegal aliens is a threat to the West itself.NEW DEM PROPOSAL WOULD RESTRICT ICE'S KEY TOOL TO DETAIN CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS"I think it's a very important time for Western civilization, honestly, to stand up and say, 'no, we actually believe in sovereignty.We believe that a country can decide who can come and who has to go,' and that this is our moment," he said.
"And the easiest of low-hanging fruit is to say that when you're here illegally and you've committed a violent act, when you're released from prison, we're actually going to...