Punchbowl: Immigration Hub Warns Against GOP Budget Resolution Providing A Blank Check For Mass Deportations

Washington, D.C. –  Today, Punchbowl News published a memo from the Immigration Hub that highlights the devastating impacts of the House GOP budget resolution. The memo details how up to $200 billion could be funneled into President Trump’s mass deportation agenda—diverting funds away from essential programs and forcing working families to shoulder the cost while delivering tax cuts to big corporations and billionaires.

With a vote on this resolution expected as early as tomorrow, the Trump administration is eager to continue turbocharging its sweeping and indiscriminate enforcement operations. It’s clear that Trump is targeting anyone who doesn’t fit his image of America, as his administration is even revoking legal protections from those living and working here lawfully (including 300,000 Venezuelans and 500,000 Haitians). Given that most voters overwhelmingly prefer a pathway to citizenship over mass deportations, it is vital for lawmakers to stand against this budget.

Read the full memo below:

This week, House Republicans are advancing a budget resolution that would funnel up to $200 billion into turbocharging President Trump’s mass deportation operations. This proposal doesn’t just supercharge enforcement—it forces working families to foot the bill while delivering tax cuts to corporations and billionaires. Instead of investing in programs that help American families thrive, Trump and Republicans are planning to divert funds away from critical resources like Medicaid, ACA benefits, Pell grants and nutrition programs to bankroll mass family separation. Trump is asking communities to accept a devastating trade-off: fewer resources for seniors, children, and working families in exchange for militarization of neighborhoods across America, higher prices at the grocery store, and government raids in schools, churches, hospitals, worksites, and even homes.

Trump’s $200 Billion Budget 

• Turbocharged Deportation Force – The bill could double ICE’s budget, giving the agency unprecedented resources to ramp up mass removals, detention, and expand enforcement across the country–even as efforts have already targeted parents, veterans, and school children.Congress will be signing a blank check to give ICE added capacity to meet arbitrary quotas. 
• Indefinite Detention and Kickbacks to Private Prisons – Trump’s plan could fund over 60,000 new detention beds, ensuring indefinite detention for immigrants—including families and longtime residents—at taxpayer expense. This budget could fund opening new mass detention facilities, using military bases like Guantánamo Bay, and contracting with local governments and private prison corporations.
• New Deportation Army – The bill would add thousands of new ICE agents to conduct more raids, workplace arrests, and indiscriminate enforcement sweeps.
• Multi-Billion Dollar Border Wall Slush Fund – Despite past failures, Trump is demanding billions in new funding for border wall construction, diverting resources from real immigration solutions.
• Funding Rogue Immigration Enforcement – The bill may include a multi-billion-dollar payout to states like Texas and Florida to fund shadow immigration enforcement efforts like Governor Abbot’s detention camps and Governor DeSantis’ immigrant bounty-hunting program, setting a dangerous precedent for states to carry out Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda.

Bottomline:  It’s clear the notion that President Trump is only going after criminals is nothing but a farce. The Trump administration is expanding who is deportable including nearly a million TPS holders, including 300,000 Venezuelans and 500,000 Haitians who will no longer be able to participate in our labor force.

President Trump threatened to deport 20 million immigrants – including Dreamers, TPS holders, farmworkers, millions of workers and families who help local economies thrive.This budget will hand his administration a blank check to deliver on this threat. 

America’s Immigration Reality

• Voters Overwhelmingly Support a Pathway to Citizenship – 57% of battleground voters favor a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who meet certain requirements, compared to just 37% who support mass deportation.
• Even Trump’s Base Prefers a Balanced Approach – Among Trump supporters, 26% back a pathway to citizenship and 39% prefer a balanced approach, proving that mass deportation is not a widely accepted position—even among his own voters.
• The Majority Reject an Enforcement-Only Strategy – In the final weeks of the election, 64% of battleground voters supported a balanced approach that includes border security and protections for Dreamers, while just 31% preferred an enforcement-only crackdown.

This reckless mass deportation plan threatens families, weakens local economies, and ignores the real priorities of the American people. It would cost the U.S. economy billions by removing workers, disrupting businesses, and stoking fear in entire communities. It’s time for lawmakers to step up and reject Trump’s mass deportation funding. Congress must replace it with an immigration vision that meets the needs of the country—one that includes a pathway to citizenship, smart border security, and policies that strengthen communities rather than tear them apart. Voters are ready for real solutions. Democratic voters (65%) are asking leaders to stand up and oppose Trump. Now, lawmakers must deliver.

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The Immigration Hub is a national organization dedicated to advancing fair and just immigration policies through strategic leadership, innovative communications strategies, legislative advocacy and collaborative partnerships.