New York's Kirsten Gillibrand, Bill de Blasio echo progressive calls to 'abolish ICE'

Two prominent New York Democrats joined recent calls from progressives to abolish the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio both called for the dismantling of ICE this week amid backlash over President Donald Trump's "zero tolerance" immigration policy.

"I don't think ICE today is working as intended," Gillibrand said on CNN Thursday evening. "I believe that it has become a deportation force, and I think you should separate the criminal justice from the immigration issues. And I think you should reimagine ICE under a new agency with a very different mission and take those two missions out."

On Friday, Gillibrand echoed her sentiment on Facebook, writing "We need to abolish ICE."

De Blasio said in a radio interview with WNYC Friday, "ICE's time has come and gone."

He added, "We should abolish ICE. We should create something better, something different."

Both Democrats' comments came after Tuesday's primary win by progressive, Democratic Socialist candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez over Democratic incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley for New York's 14th congressional district.

Ocasio-Cortez is one of many progressives who has called for ICE to be abolished.

On Monday, Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., said he would introduce legislation to eliminate the agency.

ICE has been in the center of the storm over family separations at the border. The Trump administration's "zero tolerance" immigration edict had ICE arresting undocumented immigrant adults entering the country without using legal entry points. Children with those adults were then placed with the Department of Health and Human Services.

President Donald Trump ordered the separations halted, but the details on what is next are being worked out.

Stephen Yale-Loehr, a professor at Cornell University Law School who has written extensively on immigration law, told USA TODAY earlier this week that ICE isn't going anywhere soon.

"Even if the Democrats take control of Congress in November, the chances of abolishing ICE are slim to none," he said.

Contributing: John Bacon. Follow Ryan Miller on Twitter @RyanW_Miller

WPXI