BLUFF: Democrats Say They'll Vote Against Their Own Bill To Abolish ICE

Have you ever been caught bluffing on a poor hand in poker? Well, that’s basically what happened to some Democrats on Thursday.

Three House Democratic members introduced a bill that would abolish the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement — but when it appeared the House would take up the bill, the same three Democrats said they would vote against it. That’s right, three Democrats — Reps. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), and Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) — said they would vote against their own bill.

When the Democrats introduced the measure, GOP members lead by House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), called their bluff, saying they would bring the bill to the House floor for a vote. Republicans likely wanted Democrats to go on record as voting to abolish ICE, which would have run opposed to the 75 percent of Americans who say they disagree with the idea.

But it appears Democrats would rather virtue signal than attempt to push their bill through Congress.

If passed, the bill would require the government to examine ICE’s role as an enforcement agency, then look to transfer its employees to other agencies.

The Democrats’ reasoning for planning to vote against their own bill was quite questionable. They blamed Republicans… for their decision to vote with… Republicans?  

"We know Speaker Ryan is not serious about passing our 'Establishing a Humane Immigration Enforcement System Act,' so members of Congress, advocacy groups, and impacted communities will not engage in this political stunt," they wrote in a statement.

Allow me to translate the Democrats' statement: "We fold."