On March 27, Democratic Oregon Congresswoman Janelle Bynum posted a press release on her website with the slug, “Congresswoman Bynum Rejects ‘Murder Money’ for ICE Funding.” The press release page itself carries a different title: “Once again, Republicans are attempting to pour water on our necks and calling it rain. I’m not here for it.” Bynum’s remarks in full came in the wake of her vote to reject additional immigration enforcement funding:
Today, Congresswoman Janelle Bynum (OR-05) released the following statement after voting against a 60-day temporary funding resolution to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security, including ICE and CBP.
House Republicans brought this package to the floor, instead of the Senate-passed bill, which passed unanimously, to fund the Department of Homeland Security, but without funding for ICE and CBP.“No other law enforcement agency in the land is acting with this level of unaccountability. Tear gassing kids at peaceful protests, masked men kidnapping Americans, and terrorism in our communities is all that we’ve gotten from this weak agency. The American people were sold snake oil and offered wooden nickels by this Administration. I’m all for funding the TSA, the Coast Guard, and FEMA, but I won’t send another dollar to ICE without major reforms. Once again, Republicans are attempting to pour water on our necks and calling it rain. I’m not here for it.”
Congresswoman Bynum’s “murder money” remarks capped off several high-profile incidents of deadly and violent crime related to undocumented immigrants in Oregon. In November 2025, an undocumented immigrant from India jack-knifed a semi-truck and trailer in Deschutes County, which is represented by Congresswoman Bynum, killing two occupants of another vehicle. ICE notes that the immigrant had been issued a CDL by the State of California after entering the country in 2022, and that they had to arrest him a second time after he was released from custody in April by Oregon officials.
In January 2026, two undocumented immigrants weaponized their car against ICE officers, prompting them to respond with firearms in the field. At the time, Congresswoman Bynum condemned the ICE agents for defending themselves, saying, “This isn’t law enforcement, it’s state-sponsored terrorism… Stop fucking with us.”
Attempted violence toward ICE officers occurred again in February 2026, when the Department of Homeland Security announced an investigation into a St. Helens teenager who allegedly authored a manifesto opposing federal immigration enforcement. The investigation was spurred by a traffic stop revealing a large weapons collection, with an AR-15 allegedly awaiting delivery. KATU reported that the individual’s plans also allegedly included beheading ICE agents and bringing severed heads to the nearby Warm Springs Reservation.
Congresswoman Bynum was nominated by Democrats to seek a second term in the US House of Representatives this fall. She faces Republican Deschutes County Commissioner Patti Adair.
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