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Federal agents acting like secret police

Under Donald Trump, we are witnessing something I never thought I would see in the United States of America: federal agents acting like secret police.

Trump's ICE agents are showing up without identification. They are disappearing people into unmarked vans. They are denying detainees access to attorneys. And in too many cases, they are harming — even killing — members of our communities.

This is authoritarianism, and I refuse to stay silent.

Here's what I've been doing to fight back and hold ICE accountable:

  • I introduced the ICE and CBP Constitutional Accountability Act with Representative Andrea Salinas — legislation that gives Americans the ability to sue the federal government when ICE or CBP agents violate their constitutional rights.
  • I partnered with Senator Ed Markey and Representative Pramila Jayapal on the ICE Out of Our Faces Act to ban ICE from weaponizing facial recognition technology to surveil, track, and intimidate people in our communities.
  • I stood firm against giving DHS and ICE a blank check — refusing to rubber-stamp billions of dollars while lawless agents terrorize families and trample basic freedoms.

Let me be blunt: unidentified agents grabbing people off the street and throwing them into vans is what secret police do around the world. It is not who we are, and it cannot be allowed to become normal here.

This is a fight for accountability. A fight for transparency. And a fight to save our republic.

Onward!

Jeff

Posted on February 9, 2026.

Born in the small town of Myrtle Creek, Oregon, Jeff Merkley has never lost touch with his working class roots.

As a U.S. Senator, he works every day to create opportunity for working families, stop the corruption of our democracy, and tackle the climate crisis.

A workhorse and a progressive champion, Jeff Merkley is leading a movement to get our country back on track.

Meet Jeff

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