Trump signs Secure America Act

President Donald Trump signed the nearly $70 billion immigration enforcement bill on Wednesday after the House narrowly approved the measure, providing funding for ICE and Border Patrol operations through the remainder of Trump's term. Speaking before signing the bill, Trump said the funding would ensure ICE and Border Patrol have the resources needed to "protect our borders" and remove "criminal aliens" from the country. "The Secure America Act provides $38 billion to ICE, $26 billion to Border Patrol, to ensure these critical law enforcement agencies have the necessary resources to do their jobs, protecting our borders and getting criminal aliens out of the country," Trump said. Trump also accused Democrats of trying to block Department of Homeland Security funding and said the legislation would help continue efforts to combat crime, drug trafficking and child exploitation while expanding immigration enforcement nationwide. "Congressional Democrats tried to block all funding for the Department of Homeland Security in a reprehensible attempt to throw open the borders of the United States of America," Trump said. The Secure America Act provides "the resources needed to keep our border secure, combat human trafficking, stop the flow of deadly drugs, dismantle criminal cartels, and enforce America's immigration laws," the White House said in a statement. Democrats repeatedly opposed the legislation, particularly after the Trump administration expanded ICE operations in U.S. cities. Critics pointed to recent incidents in Minneapolis that resulted in the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good. "Republicans have now come back for more, to give ICE and Donald Trump's violent mass deportation machine another $70 billion blank check, with no oversight, no accountability and no guardrails," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said. Speaker Mike Johnson argued the funding was necessary and long overdue. "We have to fund border security and immigration enforcement, and it's sad that Republicans have to do it on our own," Johnson said. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin blamed Democrats for the monthslong standoff over immigration funding, arguing the impasse delayed resources for federal enforcement agencies. "Congressional Democrats have made it clear that they no longer support the brave men and women of ICE and Border Patrol, and the inflammatory rhetoric they and their allies have levied against them has led to unprecedented levels of threats and assaults," Mullin wrote on X. He added that the funding fight "NEVER should have happened." The legislation also faced debate over a proposed $1 billion White House ballroom project and a separate $1.8 billion "anti-weaponization" fund threatened to derail the measure before lawmakers ultimately removed those provisions from the package. Under the final legislation, the White House says $38 billion will go to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, $26 billion to Border Patrol operations and roughly $5 billion for contingency costs. The measure frontloads funding through the remainder of Trump's term as the administration pursues a goal of deporting about 1 million people annually. The package comes in addition to nearly $140 billion in immigration-enforcement funding that Republicans authorized last year for ICE and Customs and Border Protection as part of Trump's broader tax and spending package. _______________ Follow KRCG on social media: KRCG CBS 13 News on Facebook:   / krcgtv   KRCG CBS 13 News on Twitter:   / krcg13   KRCG CBS 13 News on Instagram:   / krcg13news   Subscribe to KRCG on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/KRCGNews... Watch more top local news stories:    • Local Content   For all of the day’s top local and national news, visit http://www.krcgtv.com/ Watch our live newscasts and other live video at https://krcgtv.com/watch Have a news tip? Send it directly to us: Email us: [email protected] Call the Newsroom: 573-896-5144 KRCG CBS 13 News offers coverage of news, sports, weather and local events in the Columbia and Jefferson City, Missouri area, including the community of New Bloomfield. #krcg #krcgnews #missourinews #cbs13news