At least 20 people have died in ICE custody this year

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November 8, 2025

ABUSING POWER AND RIGHTS

Behind closed doors, a safety and human rights crisis

An Illinois judge issued a temporary restraining order to an ICE holding facility, expressing concerns about the “unnecessarily cruel” conditions and ordering them to immediately improve safety and sanitation. The holding cells at the facility were originally designed for stays no longer than 12 hours, but because of a reversal in ICE’s internal policy, people are now being held there, and at holding facilities nationwide, for days on end, and often without beds, access to showers and private toilets, or even adequate food, water, and medical care. The administration’s mandatory detention policy — which more than 100 federal judges across the country have independently rebuked — has placed more people in the detention system and for longer periods than the system was ever outfitted to handle. POGO has investigated and long raised alarm about the conditions in ICE detention. The administration’s aggressive mass deportation agenda only had the potential to make these widespread problems much worse.  At least 20 people have died in ICE custody this year. That is almost twice the fatalities of 2024.  Shutdown consequences: The furloughing of staff at the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Detention Oversight means that ICE facilities are going without oversight at a time they need it most. More pushback from the Illinois courts: A federal judge ruled to restrict federal agents’ use of force against reporters and protestors in Chicago. She also said that Gregory Bovino, the top Border Patrol official there, admitted to lying about being hit in the head with a rock — an incident he was using to justify deploying tear gas against protestors.

EXECUTIVE POWER GRAB

War powers vote fails, again

Monday marked 60 days since the Trump administration officially reported to Congress the first military strike on a boat in the Caribbean Sea — and the end of the ‘60-day clock’ by which the administration is required, under the War Powers Resolution, to stop any subsequent military actions that have not been authorized by Congress. But administration officials claimed that the law does not apply to them. And when met with the opportunity to stop any further escalation on Thursday, your Senators once again failed to pass bipartisan legislation that would’ve prevented unconstitutional war in Venezuela and asserted their own authority over war. With every concession they make over their say, they are also conceding your authority. You deserve far better from your representatives. The administration has admitted to lawmakers that it does not have legal justification to strike Venezuela — at least for now. It did not rule out future actions.  Meanwhile: The administration is eyeing a new target for military action: Mexico.  “Presidents have kind of taken [the War Powers Resolution] and run with it for 60 days, and then dared Congress to stop them,” POGO’s David Janovsky tells Roll Call.

TAXPAYER TRANSPARENCY

Shutdown officially the longest ever

(Photos: Getty Images; Illustration: Leslie Garvey / POGO)

The government shutdown passed a pivotal landmark this week, and at 39 days and counting, we are officially in the longest — and costliest — government shutdown ever. But, a reminder of the pain points beyond just the financial costs: ✅ The cost to social services: The food assistance program SNAP and early childhood program HeadStart are disrupted, affecting the daily lives of millions of families and children.   ✅ The cost to productivity: Over 670,000 federal employees are furloughed. That amounts to millions of lost workdays, significant lost output, and time lost on playing catch up once the shutdown ends.   ✅The cost to government effectiveness: Agencies aren’t able to complete their most basic functions, causing massive delays and backlogs in everything from research to permit approval to loan dispersal.  The public’s frustration over this shutdown has no party lines. You deserve a functional government.   ANALYSIS Executive Overreach Could Shut Down the Government: POGO’s Faith Williams explains how the practice of “pocket recissions” delivered a final, fatal blow to an already-dysfunctional appropriations process.

POGO ADVOCACY TRAINING SERIES

Writing a Letter to the Editor

Join POGO’s advocacy experts for a training on how to give a bigger platform to the issues we are driving progress on. Session Focus: The militarization of American cities and the crisis of executive overreach.  Wednesday, November 19, 2025 | 7:00 PM EST | Zoom   Space is limited, so RSVP to save your spot today!

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