The Democratic Party finds itself at a crossroads once more, with the contentious slogan “abolish ICE” gaining traction among some of its more outspoken members. Prominent figures such as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Congresswoman Ilhan Omar have embraced this call in response to the tragic deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti during encounters with border patrol agents in Minneapolis. Yet, seasoned political strategist David Axelrod cautions against this approach, urging Democrats to tread carefully.

Axelrod, who played a pivotal role in President Barack Obama’s campaigns, warns that the push to dismantle ICE could be as detrimental to the party as the “defund the police” movement proved to be in 2020. In a conversation with CNN’s Boris Sanchez and Brianna Keilar, Axelrod expressed that while Americans expect adherence to legal immigration processes, they do not support the wholesale abolition of immigration enforcement. “I think that people believe you should come to the country legally, and if you don’t, there should be some penalty for that,” Axelrod remarked, emphasizing that the desire to abolish ICE is not widely held among voters.

The comparison to the “defund the police” slogan is particularly telling. Following the tragic death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, the movement gained momentum but ultimately backfired politically. Axelrod notes that while most did not advocate for the complete elimination of policing, the phrase suggested as much, leading to a backlash. This, he argues, is a trap Democrats should avoid with the “abolish ICE” rhetoric.

A Fox poll has revealed that support for abolishing ICE has doubled since 2018, now standing at 36 percent among voters. Of the Democrats surveyed, 59 percent were on board with the measure. Only 16 percent of Republicans agreed. But 59 percent of all voters agreed that ICE is too aggressive – a 10-point jump since July. On January 15 – about a week after Good was shot – Congressman Shri Thanedar introduced the Abolish ICE Act. The legislation aims to tear down the agency. ‘Americans are being terrorized,’ Thanedar said in a statement. ‘We must fundamentally change the way we approach immigration: it ’s time to abolish ICE.’

Democratic-socialist Mamdani has backed this ideology, writing on X earlier this week: ‘ICE murdered Renee Good in broad daylight. Less than three weeks later, they killed Alex Pretti, shooting him 10 times. ‘Every day, we watch as people are ripped from their cars, their homes, their lives. We can’t allow ourselves to look away from this cruelty. Abolish ICE.’ Congresswoman Omar, who has been at constant odds with Trump over ICE and his statements about the Somali community, has also supported the movement that Axelrod described as detrimental. ‘In Congress, I continue to push for ICE to be abolished and replaced with an agency that can defend our national security without criminalizing and brutalizing vulnerable communities,’ she wrote in a statement regarding her stance on immigration.

‘I am also steadfastly fighting to prevent even one more dollar from going to the Department of Homeland Security that could be used for the continued vilification of immigrants or other practices that violate the fundamental values we hold as a country.’ Axelrod’s CNN discussion comes as the White House has reportedly struck a deal with Democrats to avoid a partial government shutdown over DHS funding. ‘The only thing that can slow our Country down is another long and damaging Government Shutdown,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday.

The US president added: ‘Republicans and Democrats in Congress have come together to get the vast majority of the Government funded until September, while at the same time providing an extension to the Department of Homeland Security (including the very important Coast Guard, which we are expanding and rebuilding like never before).’ The administration and Democrats have reportedly agreed to separate DHS funding from the rest of the legislation. The department will be funded for two weeks as they continue debating over the Democrats’ demands to tighten the reins on ICE.