Politicians Should Stop Playing Politics with PPE Gear,
Risking the Lives of ICE Agents
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 27, 2020
WASHINGTON, DC – Larry Cosme, National President of the Federal Law
Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), today issued the following statement in
response to some Members of Congress's move to block Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and other agencies’ request
for additional Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) during the COVID-19 response.
"Politicians playing politics with federal law enforcement PPE requests is
outrageous," said FLEOA President Cosme. "These politicians would essentially
rather have federal law enforcement officers from ICE and other agencies exposed
to COVID-19 and risk death rather than provide PPE gear.”
"Every law enforcement officer and federal agency is on the front lines right now
working to respond to this public health crisis. Many are conducting their work
while lacking PPE due to a lack of adequate funding for it in the past, as no one ever
realized how much PPE would be necessary for this level of a pandemic," said
Cosme.
"If the Immigration and Customs Enforcement requested 45 thousand N-95 medical
masks, Congress should trust that this is needed for the response operations due to
the myriad of people that ICE comes in contact with. Failing to provide the
necessary equipment places the agents, their families, and those they are engaging
with at risk of exposure," Cosme explained. "It is ludicrous for Senator Jeff Merkley
of Oregon to say in one breath that ‘This is not the time to use masks for
deportations’ and in the next, say ‘People are dying and our front line health care
workers are at great risk, as are our public safety officials.’ These statements
neglect the reality that members of the federal law enforcement community, such as
ICE agents, are the exact public safety officials who are on the front line and at
great risk.”
"It is also ridiculous that Oregon Representative Earl Blumenauer piled on by
saying, ‘I think it’s important that we don’t set up a parallel system that competes
with critical needs of our first responders in order to prop up some of the activities
of ICE, which may be inappropriate.’ This statement indicates that Congressman
Blumenauer does not recognize federal law enforcement officers, such as ICE
agents, as first responders. These statements send the message that Representatives
Blumenauer and Merkley would rather ICE agents and their families contract
COVID-19 than have PPE," said Cosme.
Cosme continued, "While these two might gain pathetic political points in Oregon for
refusing ICE protective masks and risking these officer’s lives, they fail to realize, or
do not care, that they are also endangering the rest of the country and the families
of those federal law enforcement officers. If these Representatives have a problem
with ICE operations, they can debate the law they create during a regular
Congressional session. They should not deny these agents protective resources
during a global crisis.”
"It is clear Representatives Blumenauer and Merkley and other Members of
Congress have chosen to play politics with PPE funding during this time. It is a
despicable action and life-threatening as this pandemic continues. If these
Representatives want to deny PPE to anyone, perhaps they should start with
themselves and the other members of Congress that chose politics over public safety
at this critical time in our nation." Cosme concluded, "Our message to these
Members and the rest of Congress is simple: Do not let our members and their
families die from your dangerous and pathetic political agenda. Fully support and
fund the needs of all federal law enforcement agencies. Let those agencies and
federal law enforcement officers do what they do best, protect America. Rather
what you are doing, endangering their lives.”
FLEOA is the nation’s largest non-partisan, not-for-profit professional association
representing more than 28,000 federal law enforcement officers and agents across 65
federal agencies.