Overview
- Representative Ro Khanna publicly renewed criticism of Democrats who voted for the Laken Riley Act during a CNN appearance, saying the vote was “terrible” and demanded explanations from those lawmakers.
- Khanna argued the law allowed deportation without due process and said that vote created a legal framework that, in his view, enabled mass deportations and family separations under the Trump administration.
- On the CNN segment the host named specific Democrats who supported the bill, and Khanna said those members should at least explain their votes and could be disqualified from future party leadership roles.
- Khanna framed his stance as personal and moral, noting his background as the son of immigrants and adding a call to abolish U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and create a new enforcement agency.
- The remarks were reported as statements rather than steps toward formal party action, and the dispute highlights growing intra-party tension over past immigration votes and possible pressure on Democratic leaders to account for them.