Rep. Andrea Salinas Leads 13 Colleagues in Demanding Safe and Fair Access for Journalists During Protests

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Andrea Salinas (OR-06) led 13 of her colleagues in sending a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem to demand that the Trump Administration ensure journalists can freely exercise their First Amendment rights by allowing them to safely access and report on demonstrations across the country.

The letter expressed serious concerns about reports that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal law enforcement officers engaged in “extreme brutality” to silence the press and granted certain press outlets preferential access to coverage based on their viewpoints.

The lawmakers pressed for clear and timely answers to their questions and called on the Trump Administration to act quickly to reaffirm its commitment to the Constitution.

Click here or see below for the full letter:

Dear Attorney General Bondi and Secretary Noem,

We write to share our serious concerns regarding the treatment of journalists by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other Federal Law Enforcement Officers responding to First Amendment protected protest activity around the country. We seek your partnership in ensuring that journalists are able to freely exercise their First Amendment rights to provide fair and accurate coverage of these incidences – coverage which lawmakers, law enforcement, and the public rely on to monitor, understand, and respond to these events. 

Amid protests of the Trump Administration’s aggressive approach to immigration enforcement, we have heard disturbing allegations that this Administration is failing to ensure safe and equal access for reporters. In Portland, city officials have raised concerns the federal government is “engaging in prohibited viewpoint discrimination” by providing unequal access to social media influencers documenting the demonstrations depending on their viewpoints. In Chicago, a group of press associations and journalists is suing the Administration, alleging that federal law enforcement officers employed “extreme brutality” to silence the press. One journalist reported that a masked ICE agent shot a pepper ball at her car, burning her face. Federal Courts have since imposed a temporary restraining order on the Government in that case, prohibiting officers from further targeting journalists.

We hope that you share our deep commitment to the First Amendment, and ask that you respond to the following questions regarding your Agencies’ policies on this matter:

• Have you opened any investigations into alleged targeting of the press by federal law enforcement officers? If yes, what is the status of these investigations?
• Have you provided any special trainings to ICE agents and other Federal Law enforcement Officers before deploying these officers to assist with crowd control at First Amendment protected demonstrations?
• As protests have grown in recent months, what policies or strategies have your agencies adopted to work with the press to ensure continued safe and equal access for reporters covering these events?
• As you move Federal Law Enforcement Officers around the country in response to developments at these protests, how are you coordinating between agencies to ensure consistent policies regarding protections and access for press? 

We hope to partner with you to ensure that the Press is afforded the access and protections demanded by the First Amendment. We look forward to your response.

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