House Speaker Johnson Slams Dems Over ICE Agents Masking During COVID: "They Mandated Masks for Years"

A heated debate has emerged in Washington over whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents should be required to reveal their identities during enforcement operations. House Speaker Mike Johnson voiced strong opposition on Friday to recent calls from Democratic leaders urging ICE officers to unmask themselves while conducting arrests of migrants, calling the push "absurd" and accusing Democrats of hypocrisy because of their previous support for mask mandates during the coronavirus pandemic.

Johnson, when asked about suggestions by Democratic lawmakers such as House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries that ICE agents should not conceal their faces, responded pointedly: “From the people who mandated mask wearing for years in America. It’s absurd. They need to back off of ICE and respect our agents and stop protesting against them,” he said. Johnson defended the current protocol for ICE agents, emphasizing that officers often mask up to protect themselves from being publicly identified and targeted by activists online.

The controversy intensified after Jeffries remarked earlier in the week that ICE officers who attempt to hide their identities “will be unsuccessful in doing that” and that activists would work to identify them “no matter what it takes, no matter how long it takes.” These comments drew fire from Republican leaders, who argue that publicizing agents’ identities puts them and their families at risk.

Pressed about safety concerns at his regular press conference, Jeffries maintained his stance for transparency, stating, “It seems to me that the officials at the Department of Homeland Security, including ICE, should be held to the same standards as every other part of law enforcement in terms of transparency.”

The discussion comes amid a series of enforcement operations across the country in which, according to Democratic Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, ICE officers have been observed making arrests while masked and without visible identification. In a letter sent last month to top Homeland Security and ICE officials, Warner and Kaine described the trend as “alarming and dangerous,” warning that unclear identification could put not only the targets of arrests but also agents and bystanders at increased risk. They urged ICE leadership to ensure officers promptly and clearly identify themselves during enforcement actions and minimize face coverings to reduce intimidation and confusion.

Meanwhile, Republicans have pushed back, insisting that protecting the identities of ICE agents is critical amid a charged political climate and frequent targeting of law enforcement officers on social media. Johnson argued, "So they can put their names and faces online and dox them? That's what these activists do. So we have to protect those who protect our communities." He added, “It’s absurd for anybody, members of Congress or any other elected leader, to be calling out ICE for trying to do their job. They've made it difficult for them to do it for years, and I just think it's patently absurd."

The dispute over masks comes with an ironic twist: several Democrats who are now pressing for unmasking ICE agents were outspoken advocates for mask wearing and COVID-19 precautions during the pandemic. Social media posts from both Jeffries and the Virginia senators in 2020 and 2021 encouraged Americans to wear masks and follow public health guidelines.

As the nation awaits potential policy shifts in the handling of immigration enforcement and law enforcement transparency, the debate underscores the deep divides on Capitol Hill over border security, privacy, and the safety of federal agents.