Why I stand with ICE to protect Nashville communities | Opinion
By Rep. Andy Ogles: For years, Americans have watched Democrats dismantle our immigration system piece by piece.
They rewrote enforcement rules, tied the hands of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and treated Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents like the enemy. The result was catastrophic. Criminal illegal aliens ravaged our communities and Tennessee’s Fifth District paid the price.
President Trump changed everything. He restored the purpose and strength of immigration enforcement. DHS and ICE are now doing the job the American people expect — and the impact is night and day right here in Tennessee.
Consider the recent case of Carlos Eduardo Garcia Alarcon, who was arrested in Nashville for sexual assault. Or perhaps Herrera Gonzalez, a Guatemalan here illegally, who was recently charged with vehicular manslaughter, vehicular assault, DUI and driving without a license after he killed a woman and left her husband fighting for his life.
In Antioch, federal agents and Metro Nashville Police raided a human trafficking brothel. Five men were arrested, with charges ranging from promoting prostitution to aggravated assault, drug trafficking and illegal firearm possession.
21-year-old Zach Carach was left severely injured after a hit-and-run by an illegal alien from Venezuela. Had I not broken the story after his mother contacted my team while Zach was in the hospital, it would have likely been buried.
These incidents are not isolated. During a recent joint operation, DHS and the Tennessee Highway Patrol arrested 196 illegal aliens in the Nashville area. Of those 196, 95 had criminal convictions or pending charges, and 31 had previously been deported.
Under Democrat policies, illegal alien criminals like these have been allowed to enter our neighborhoods and destroy the lives of innocent Americans in the most heinous ways.
In June, DHS agents identified a child victim and an adult victim of labor trafficking in Nashville. During immigration proceedings, the child revealed that she and her 18-year-old brother were forced by their sponsor to work to pay off smuggling fees and cover the sponsor’s household expenses. Thanks to Secretary Kristi Noem, federal agents uncovered the abuse, caught the abusers and protected these children.
This is what happens when DHS and ICE are empowered instead of restrained. Criminals are held accountable, and future crimes are prevented. Under President Trump’s leadership, law and order have been restored.
While the President and DHS clean up Nashville, Mayor Freddie O’Connell actively undermines their efforts.
This resistance poses real danger to our community. Every time enforcement of the law is discouraged, predators learn where they can hide. I will not allow that to happen to Nashville.
I stand with DHS. I stand with ICE. I stand with the families of Middle Tennessee who deserve a safe community. Mayor O’Connell needs to heed his primary responsibility to protect the people he serves and stop undermining their safety by prioritizing criminal illegal aliens.
Tennessee’s Fifth District is safer today thanks to President Trump. We are seeing the results, we are seeing the difference and we will finish the job.