Senate Republicans unveiled legislation Thursday to combat a surge of attacks against federal immigration officers.
The lawmakers, led by Republican Texas Sen. John Cornyn, are proposing to hike penalties for individuals who assault or resist law enforcement. The legislation would also enact minimum sentences for those who use vehicles to attack law enforcement, according to a copy of the bill obtained exclusively by the Daily Caller News Foundation.Â
Cornyn’s bill, the ICE Protection Act, comes after the Department of Homeland Security announced on Jan. 8 that vehicular attacks against ICE agents increased by 3200% between Jan. 21, 2025 and Jan. 7, 2026. The agency also reported a 1374% increase in assaults against ICE officers between roughly the same period.
DHS released the data following an incident in Minneapolis last week during which an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Good after she abruptly accelerated her vehicle during the confrontation.
The ICE officer who fired shots at Good after she allegedly attempted to drive over him suffered internal bleeding during the incident, DHS said Wednesday. Good was blocking the street with her car to obstruct an enforcement operation before the fatal encounter.
“The Radical Left has taken up a senseless crusade against our brave men and women in law enforcement, and Democrats’ inflammatory rhetoric has fueled an alarming rise in violence that not only endangers our communities but also harms the very people sworn to keep them safe,” Cornyn said in a statement.
Democratic Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who is running in a competitive Democratic primary to unseat Cornyn, notably compared ICE officers to “slave patrols” during a radio show in September.
Cornyn’s legislation would specifically hike the statutory maximum sentence for assaulting or resisting law enforcement to 40 years, up from the previous limit of 20 years. The bill would also add a minimum sentence for vehicular attacks against law enforcement ranging from three to ten years depending on the severity of the injury.
Cornyn added that the legislation “sends a clear message” that attacks on law enforcement officials will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
“Those who harm our ICE agents will face the full force and wrath of the American justice system with these increase in penalties,” Republican Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who joined Cornyn in introducing the bill, said in a statement.
Republican Sens. James Lankford of Oklahoma, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming and Steve Daines of Montana are also sponsoring the legislation. The bill is endorsed by the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association.
Cornyn, who began serving in the Senate in 2002, is vying in a three-way primary to win reelection during November’s midterm elections. Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Rep. Wesley Hunt are challenging him for the GOP nomination. No candidate is expected to win more than 50% of the vote during the March 3 primary, which would force the top two vote-getters to compete in a runoff.
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