MICHEL MARTIN: Let's hear now from Senator Alex Padilla of California. He is the ranking Democrat on the Rules and Administration Committee. His jurisdiction there includes federal elections. He's also the top Democrat on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Border Security and immigration. Senator, good morning. Thanks so much for coming in.
ALEX PADILLA: Good morning. Good morning. Good to be here in person.
MARTIN: So let's start with the news that ICE agents are deployed to airports today to help TSA agents, who, as we know, have been working for some weeks without pay now. Some people are calling out. So people are quitting. Considering the long lines that some travelers have seen, do you think this is a reasonable step?
PADILLA: It doesn't have to be this way, number one. You know, there is an easy way to fund TSA and pay all TSA personnel to do their job, Democrats have been putting on the table repeatedly for weeks now.
MARTIN: What is it? What's the easy way?
PADILLA: The easy way is - look, the Department of Homeland Security as a whole is the partial government shutdown. Several agencies within DHS. It includes ICE. It includes CBP, but it's also TSA, FEMA, the Coast Guard and even the cybersecurity agency, which we call CISA. So Democrats have put on the table bills that would fund all the other non-immigration enforcement agencies within the Department of Homeland Security. Republicans have blocked it. I think - I mean, in my conversations, there's an increasing number of Republican senators who see that as a step forward while we continue to negotiate the necessary reforms for ICE and CBP and any other agents that will be involved in immigration enforcement. From what I understand, even Leader Thune took that to Donald Trump, and Donald Trump said no. So clearly, Republicans and the president are the ones holding up payment for TSA and TSA personnel.
MARTIN: Do you think having ICE at airports changes anything in the dynamics of the negotiations over the funding? I mean, I think the - it's pretty clear from the Republican side that their calculation is that the Democrats are withholding pay from American citizens out of concern for illegal immigrants. That's kind of the reductive sort of argument there. So do you think this visible presence of ICE agents is going to change anything about the dynamics?
PADILLA: I think it's actually the opposite effect. It shows how ridiculous this scenario is. If there's no good reason to hold up funding for TSA, then why are Republicans doing it? Number one. I do think in some areas, given how DHS has gone about their immigration enforcement activity, it will give a lot of people pause. Like, really, at airports? You can't fly without showing your ID to get onto the plane. And so this is not a place where you're going to find sort of the undocumented immigrant population that ICE says they're focusing on, certainly not the worst of the worst that ICE says they're focusing.
MARTIN: Do you have any idea of what the rules of engagement are? I mean, will they be wearing masks, for example...
PADILLA: Well, not only do I...
MARTIN: ...And all the things that people have been complaining about?
PADILLA: Not only do I not know, and, yes, we've asked the department for more information - how is this supposed to be put into effect? They themselves don't have it, right? There's reporting that ICE leadership caught wind of this from, you know, President Trump's off-the-cuff remarks on social media. And so they're scrambling now, I think, to put a plan in place to appease the president because that's all most of the administrative leaders have done. Just whatever the president wants, let's figure out how to give it to him.
MARTIN: Well, of course, the president's added a new wrinkle. He said last night that Republicans shouldn't make any deals on DHS and ICE funding until they pass the SAVE Act, which is this voter eligibility act. What do you - what about that?
PADILLA: So much for having clear and consistent priorities. Like, first, you know, DHS funding is the number one priority. Now that's not as important as the SAVE Act, which is anything but an election's integrity bill. And even that is a distraction from the failed agenda of this administration. Have you seen where prices are these days? Not just for food, not just for housing. You know, I'm hearing from constituents and friends and family back in California, where gas is now upwards of $7 a gallon. If I was the president, that would be my primary focus. But you have Donald Trump, whose whims change on a daily basis.
MARTIN: So is the SAVE Act a nonstarter for you? I mean, the polls show that voters generally like the idea of people showing voter ID at the polls. So your just - it's a nonstarter for you?
PADILLA: Well, look, I'm in the business of legislating here - right? - where details matter, and while a voter ID proposal may sound good, devil's always in the details. When most people think of an ID, they think of their driver's license. If you read the language of this bill, that would not be sufficient to be able to register and to vote. Imagine that. It would require a passport, an original birth certificate. Who has that, you know, at their fingertips? But this bill is so...
MARTIN: If you changed your name, if you got married, as I did, my original birth certificate is not relevant.
PADILLA: Exactly. So now you're scrambling not just for your birth certificate, now it's your wedding certificate, as well, to show up in person at the county elections office. Now you're taking time off to work to go do that. Anyway, it's very problematic, number one. Number two, it also paves the way for - back to the Department of Homeland Security to gain access to the personal information of every voter in America. This is the Trump administration. This is the administration of this dangerous DOGE experiment from this last year, with unauthorized side deals with political groups to share Social Security information. Now we're going to give them voter information for every voter in America.
MARTIN: So it's a nonstarter. The SAVE Act is a nonstarter for you?
PADILLA: It's a nonstarter, and it's unnecessary because every study, every audit shows voter fraud is exceedingly rare. It's already a crime for noncitizens to vote in elections, and we have the safeguards in place that are working.
MARTIN: Before we let you go, let's talk about the president's nominee for DHS secretary, Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin. Senator Mullin signaled in his confirmation that he might be open to reform at the agency, like requiring a judicial warrant for immigration agents to enter homes. The New York Times reported that even before that, he was discussing reforms with a House colleague. Do those developments make you any more likely to support his confirmation?
PADILLA: Look, I don't want openness. I want commitments. What's going to change? Not just the name at the top, not just the person with the title, what policies and practices will change in the Department of Homeland Security to rein in immigration enforcement that has been out of control and violating people's rights? And we need that in statute. It's one thing to hear promises and openness. We need changes in statute, and we will hold the department accountable.
MARTIN: Do you know how you're going to vote on this nomination today?
PADILLA: Well, I haven't met with him yet. I am scheduled to meet with him later today to ask these very specific questions. You know, we've put proposals on the table for how, yes, immigration enforcement officials should be conducting their business, but consistent with the rule of law and consistent with fundamental constitutional rights.
MARTIN: I mean, obviously, you're not going to negotiate here with me. We only have about 30 seconds left. But do you see a scenario where these agents get paid, like where this whole scenario kind of comes to an end that the Democrats get something that they want, which is they want some changes in the tactics, and these agents can get paid?
PADILLA: Look, I think, short-term, let's fund not just TSA. Let's also fund the Coast Guard. Let's fund CISA, the cybersecurity agency, and let's fund FEMA. But when it comes to ICE and CBP, not without needed reforms - and by the way, there's no shortage of money there. In the so-called Beautiful Bill from last year, they front-loaded this three times the annual budget for three years in a row. So they're not short on cash.
MARTIN: That is Senator Alex Padilla. He's a Democrat from California. Senator, thanks so much for coming in.
PADILLA: Thank you.
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