Democratic Fold on ICE Funding in Progress? Not If We Can Help It - January 21, 2026
Plus a need for action on the Epstein files, TX state senate seat up for grabs, a Voting Rights Act briefing and more
🚗 Today’s corporate target for the #ICEOutofMN week of action: Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Let’s call on them to stop collaborating by sending a letter to management here, using this call tool to reach out to their customer service lines and ask them to terminate their ICE contracts, or participating in a rent-and-cancel action here 🚗
Contact all members of Congress:
By phone: (202) 224-3121
By email: Congress.gov
By US mail: Representatives / Senators
By Resistbot: Resist.bot
If you have questions, comments, and especially submissions for actions, please email us at roganslisttips@gmail.com!
HOUSE VERSION OF DHS APPROPRIATIONS IS OUT, AND IT’S… UGLY
We’re now just 10 days from the deadline to pass Homeland Security funding for the rest of this fiscal year, and yesterday morning we got a much better idea of what that bill might look like. The House Appropriations Committee leadership rolled out initial proposals for this and the three other remaining spending bills, all of which will need a vote before the House goes on recess – currently scheduled for the end of the week. Here’s what we know:
THE GOOD:
Funding for enforcement and removal operations will be cut by $115 million
Border Patrol funding will be cut by $1.5 billion (although it still stands at $18 billion)
Detention beds will be reduced by 5,500
$20 million to outfit immigration enforcement agents with body cameras
$20 million for independent oversight of detention facilities
Directive for DHS to provide de-escalation training and training on our right to record ICE and CBP
Limits on DHS ability to reprogram and transfer funds WERE included
THE BAD:
Overall funding for ICE will remain the same – i.e. the tripling of their resources by the MAGA Murder Budget is preserved
Ban on ICE agents wearing face masks was NOT included
Explicit warrant requirements for arrests were NOT included
Restricting the Border Patrol to the border was NOT included
Limiting the use of guns by ICE during civil actions was NOT included
It’s been reluctantly endorsed by Democratic appropriators like Senator Patty Murray and Rep. Rosa DeLauro, who argue that a “shutdown” will not in fact stop ICE but let them continue to operate without even the minimal constraints included here. But it is, to be blunt, insufficient. These changes are nibbling around the edges at a time when our friends and neighbors are being disappeared and killed by masked thugs.
Progressive leaders such as Rep. Pramila Jayapal swiftly made it clear this bill “simply does not meet the moment we face in this country with the lawlessness of ICE and CBP agents.” We need to encourage every Democrat to stand with them instead of accepting a “compromise” that does nothing to rein in an out-of-control deportation machine. They have leverage at this moment, and they need to at least try to use it instead of throwing up their hands.
Let’s reach out to our members of Congress and tell them this Homeland Security appropriations bill should be dead on arrival, and they should vote no on this and any proposal that funds ICE without, at the very least, significant restraints on their ability to terrorize us. We can find a call tool for Indivisible for the Senate here and the House here.
NO BUT SERIOUSLY, WHERE ARE THE EPSTEIN FILES?
Trump’s threats against any nation that doesn’t soothe his ego and the violence of the deportation machine aren’t distractions. They are very much the intended agenda of this regime. That being said, there has been a lot less attention on the Epstein Files in recent weeks, even though we are now more than a month beyond the legal deadline for the administration to release them and less than 1% of them have been made public. We won’t let it quietly fade away.
Congressional Republicans, having given themselves political cover, are avoiding talking about it or openly defending the Justice Department’s failure to comply with the law. Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) are asking a federal judge to appoint an independent monitor called a special master to oversee the release process and report on whether the DoJ has acted improperly. They’ve also threatened to hold Attorney General Pam Bondi in inherent contempt over her handling of the case.
It seems clear at this point we will not get answers unless the regime fears consequences for their cover-up. We can find call scripts to demand our members of Congress support inherent contempt charges against Bondi from 5Calls here, and send this email (courtesy of the great Coleman Rogers) demanding Congress use all available tools to get us the truth via Resistbot by texting SIGN PIVGFB to 50409.
DEM ADVANCES TO RUNOFF IN GEORGIA, NOW LET’S FLIP A SEAT IN TEXAS
Thanks to everyone who helped make GOTV calls for LeMario Brown in Georgia State Senate District 18! LeMario has advanced to the February 17th runoff, where he’ll face off against the top Republican vote-getter Steven McNeel.
Meanwhile, we’re speeding towards the January 31st runoff for a state senate seat in District 9 in Texas. Air Force veteran, union leader and machinist Taylor Rehmet is standing for Democrats against conservative activist Leigh Wambsganss, who led the right wing takeover of the Southlake ISD school district. Trump won this district by 17 in 2024 and Wambsganss is significantly better funded, but Rehmet nearly earned an outright win with 47.6% of the vote on November 4th, and Tarrant County is considered a bellwether.
Early voting in this race starts today – let’s help them turn out our folks! We can join the Texas AFL-CIO to make calls for Taylor TONIGHT or next Wednesday at 6:30PM here, link up with Blue Texas for phonebanks Tuesday and Thursday evenings through the election here, or join the Environmental Voter Project for a noon phonebank targeting low propensity voters on Tuesday here.
TRUMP VERSUS FUEL EFFICIENT CARS
Trump is taking aim at yet another victory for climate action and our environment secured under Joe Biden’s leadership. He’s proposed a new rule to roll back Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFÉ) standards, which Biden just raised to ensure new cars are more fuel efficient. He wants to give free rein to American automakers to make more gas guzzlers and fewer electric vehicles. It’s bad for a rapidly warming planet, and it’s taking away their incentive to keep pace with competitors in Europe and China.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is accepting public comments on this rule through February 4th, and the folks at Climate Hawks Vote are asking us to weigh in with our opposition. We can submit our comments directly here, and use this tool and language from CHV to make our voices heard here.
MASS CALLS FOR MAY DAY, VOTING RIGHTS TONIGHT
Even with so much focus on ICE and Trump’s warmongering, we need to keep our eye on future challenges and moments to rise. Tonight organizers are holding two mass calls on a major mobilization we’re building towards and an upcoming battle we’re going to face.
At 7PM ET, the May Day Strong coalition is holding its kickoff call for planning multiple local actions and campaigns in the lead up to what should be a record-breaking protest on May 1st. We are going to flex the power of working people to demand a country we can afford to live in with rallies, marches, strikes, sickouts and protests. We can get plugged into this alliance of labor and community advocates by registering here.
At 8PM ET, the Declaration for American Democracy team is holding a mass education call on Louisiana v. Callais, a case currently before the Supreme Court which threatens the future of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. If the vote suppressors win, it will give a green light to racial gerrymandering that we once hoped was a thing of the past, with major implications for our democracy, affordable housing, health care, education and more. They’re bringing together volunteers and advocates to break down what’s at stake and how we can prepare to act. We can sign up to join the call here.
👀 KEEPING AN EYE ON… 👀
Trump is threatening war against our neighbors, and wants to tax us to do it - find phone scripts and talking points to say no Greenland invasion and no Greenland tax here, email tool here and here
Trump’s plan to massively expand offshore drilling is open to public comment - tell him hell no before FRIDAY, language here
We must do our part to protect trans kids from this regime - oppose gender-affirming care blocks before February 17th here, find ways to give material support here
New York City nurses are on strike - ways to show our solidarity here