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Congress is expected to vote this week on a federal reconciliation package that would pour roughly $72 billion more in taxpayer dollars into ICE and Border Patrol through 2029, at the same time Colorado families are struggling to afford gas, groceries, rent, health care, and child care. The bill’s passage is now in jeopardy after Sen. Thom Tillis said he opposes the latest version, and after the Senate parliamentarian ruled that a $1 billion White House security proposal tied to President Trump’s planned ballroom cannot be included in the fast-track bill. For reporters already covering the real-world impact of federal spending choices, immigration policy, and the affordability crisis, this is a clear test of priorities: more public money for detention and deportation, or real investments that help families afford their lives.
At a time when Colorado families are being squeezed by high prices for gas, groceries, housing, and health care, Congress is considering handing tens of billions of taxpayer dollars to immigration enforcement agencies that already have more money than they can spend. That is not fiscal responsibility. That is waste, fraud, and abuse of public resources.
This proposal would pour billions more into ICE and Border Patrol operations while basic needs in communities across the country go unmet. It would do nothing to lower costs for working families. It would not make child care more affordable. It would not help a family pay rent. It would not bring down the cost of groceries or health care. It would not help Coloradans who are getting squeezed every time they fill up their cars or check out at the grocery store.
Instead, this proposal would use taxpayer dollars to expand a system that harms immigrant families and destabilizes communities, while attempting to direct federal resources toward White House security projects tied to a proposed ballroom. The Senate parliamentarian has already ruled that the $1 billion White House security proposal, including work connected to the ballroom, cannot be included in the fast-track immigration funding bill as written.
Colorado families know what real waste looks like. It looks like billions of dollars for detention and deportation while public schools, hospitals, child care providers, and working families are told there is not enough money. It looks like expanding enforcement agencies without meaningful transparency or accountability. It looks like asking taxpayers to foot the bill for political theater while families are still struggling to afford meat, rent, health care, and gas.
The Colorado Fiscal Institute believes public dollars should be used to help people thrive, not to terrorize families or bankroll blank checks for agencies without adequate oversight. If Congress is serious about affordability, it should invest in health care, food security, housing, child care, and the public systems families rely on every day.
Colorado does not need more cruelty dressed up as budgeting. We need a federal budget that reflects our values, protects our communities, and uses taxpayer dollars responsibly.
