U.S. Sen. Susan Collins on Thursday said she supports immigration enforcement but doesn’t see a reason for a large influx of agents to Maine, as reports have suggested may happen soon.
“To me, I don’t see the rationale for a large number of ICE agents to come in,” the Republican senator from Maine told Igor Bobic, senior politics editor for the Huffington Post, when asked if she would support such an action.
“I, of course, support the deportation of individuals who have criminal charges against them. That’s different,” Collins reportedly said.
A spokesperson for Collins on Thursday afternoon told the BDN “we have no further information” on planned ICE actions in Maine.
Collins’ comment follows reports that federal immigration agents might be deployed next to Portland and Lewiston. Both cities have significant populations of immigrants from Somali, who the Trump administration have recently targeted in an ongoing, large-scale ICE deployment in Minneapolis.
Mayors of both Maine cities said they had received indications that ICE could be coming as soon as next week.
In response Gov. Janet Mills warned federal immigration authorities Wednesday that aggressive tactics are “not welcome” in Maine.
U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat from Lewiston, said on Thursday that he is aware of the rumors and has been in touch with local leaders in Lewiston.
“Given what’s happened in Minnesota and elsewhere, I know there are Mainers who are angry and afraid,” Golden said. “For now, with so much uncertainty, I urge everyone with a platform to avoid spreading unsubstantiated gossip or fear. In fraught moments, we need to be careful with each other and our community.”
The other two members of Maine’s congressional delegation expressed concern about the potential for unlawful conduct by the federal agents, who have run roughshod through a number of U.S. cities, detaining people, including many who are lawfully in the country, without a clear process or apparent limits on their jurisdiction and power.
Most recently, an ICE agent fatally shot a Minnesota mother and U.S. citizen in her car.
“We will not stand by as ICE, CBP, or any other agency tries to terrorize our communities and unlawfully abduct our neighbors,” U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, D-Maine, said on Wednesday after the rumors of an ICE surge in Maine came to light.
U.S. Sen. Angus King of Maine, an Independent who often caucuses with Democrats, said he shares the anxiety other Mainers are feeling especially given the videos and news coverage of intense confrontations between immigration officials and protestors in other parts of the country.
“I want to encourage everyone to look out a little closer for one another and be mindful of the rights that our Constitution gives to every man, woman, and child in this nation,” he said. “If you witness any lawlessness cloaked in the cause of federal law enforcement, please alert your local leaders, state officials, and federal delegation.”
