Rep. Tony Gonzales on Sunday strongly defended the use of administrative warrants in immigration enforcement, saying requiring judicial warrants before ICE agents can enter private property would slow operations and, in his view, make communities less safe.
Speaking on CBS' "Face the Nation," the Texas Republican said he supports constitutional protections but warned against what he described as a growing role for judges in blocking law enforcement action.
"Of course, I believe in the Fourth Amendment," Gonzales said. "But what worries me is a judge should not hold up everything. We're seeing judges all over the country go beyond their level of authority."
He said that if an officer witnesses a crime or has what he called "due cause," agents should be able to act without a judge becoming what he described as a roadblock.
"So, if a law enforcement officer, let's just say, for example, sees a crime that's being committed or has due cause, then why can't they go in there?" Gonzales said.
Meanwhile, Gonzales said allowing judges to slow operations could prevent ICE from removing offenders.
"That's what worries me. If we allow judges to be the roadblock, it doesn't keep our community safe," he said.
"Administrative warrants work," he added. "I want to give law enforcement every tool they need to go out and apprehend these convicted criminals that are loose in our community."
He also criticized the idea of placing additional legal restrictions on enforcement.
"To me, that makes a lot of sense," Gonzales said. "Why you would want to shackle your own law enforcement from keeping our community safe makes no sense to me."
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