The killing of a second person by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in recent weeks over the weekend in Minnesota is renewing calls for an investigation into the practices of federal immigration authorities.
It also comes as the Senate this week is scheduled to take up a funding bill for the Department of Homeland Security. The measure narrowly passed the House last week. U.S. Representative Richard Neal, a Springfield Democrat, voted against it. And he urged his Senate colleagues to do the same.
"I think that it's important that the Senate Democrats make a statement on this as well as those civil libertarians that traditionally would have embraced that position as Republicans," Neal said. "I think that the question here is how to proceed with an investigation of what happened and that has to include state officials."
The killing of Alex Pretti, a U.S. citizen at an immigration enforcement protest ,has drawn calls for a probe from both sides of the aisle in Congress. The Trump Administration has maintained that the actions by federal authorities was justified.
Neal working to free rail parts for Springfield factory
The Springfield-based rail car manufacturer CRRC recently announced it would need to furlough more than 160 workers in March. Shipments of crucial parts from China for subway cars being built for Boston and Los Angeles. The federal government has been holding them up over safety and security concerns.
Neal said he is working with the Trump Administration to resolve the situation and believes there is a 30-day window to clear up the situation. He said the hundreds of unionized jobs at the plant are very important to Springfield’s economy.
"These are high-wage jobs, these are very skilled workers and they're the ones that go out and buy homes, they reshape neighborhoods and they make substantial investments," Neal said. "They likely live nearby. When you visit the plant, you'd be impressed by the state of the art of what happens there."
Neal added since taxpayers across Massachusetts pay for the MBTA, the Boston-area transit agency, that having the subway cars built in Springfield allows the western part of the state to benefit from the transportation sector in the state.
For the entire conversation with Neal, click on the link above.
