The White House is pushing back sharply after New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill announced a new online ICE portal encouraging residents to film and track federal immigration officers. The proposal has drawn criticism from conservatives and law enforcement advocates who warn it could endanger officers and undermine public safety.
Sherrill, a Democrat and former U.S. Navy veteran who took office weeks ago, promoted the ICE portal during an appearance on The Daily Show. “We want documentation, and we are going to make sure we get it,” Sherrill said. “We are going to be standing up a portal so people can upload all their cell videos and alert people… If you see an ICE agent in the street, get your phone out, we want to know.”
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson condemned the plan, saying, “If Sherill was as committed to tracking down criminal illegal aliens as she was ICE officers, New Jersey residents would be much safer.” Jackson told Fox News Digital that ICE officers are facing a “1300% increase in assaults because of dangerous, untrue smears by elected Democrats.” She added, “ICE officers act heroically to enforce the law and protect American communities, and local officials should work with them, not against them.”
Sherrill’s office defended the initiative as a safeguard against federal overreach. Spokesperson Sean Higgins said the governor and Acting Attorney General Jennifer Davenport plan further actions to “protect New Jerseyans.”
Republican leaders were not persuaded. Assembly GOP Leader John DiMaio said the portal “puts everyone at risk” and accused state leaders of targeting law enforcement. “Encouraging people to film and upload law enforcement activity risks escalating tensions,” DiMaio said, citing recent ICE arrests of sex offenders and violent criminals in the state.
The dispute highlights deepening divisions over immigration enforcement and the role of state leaders in responding to federal authority.
