The meeting between Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly and about a dozen Senate Democrats was primarily organized by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.). | Getty Senate Democrats to meet with Homeland Security chief on immigration

Key Senate Democrats will meet this week with Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to discuss their objections to the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

The meeting between Kelly and about a dozen Senate Democrats who work closely on immigration policy will be held Wednesday afternoon, an aide confirmed, and was primarily organized by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.).


Democratic lawmakers have been furious over enforcement tactics coming from the Trump administration, which have included raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and detention of some young immigrants who have been granted work permits and deportation deferrals under an Obama-era initiative for so-called Dreamers.

The private meeting will follow the Homeland chief’s contentious meeting with House Democrats over the issue earlier this month. Behind closed doors, Kelly pushed back at criticism from Democratic lawmakers, telling them that he’s the “best thing to happen” to young undocumented immigrants and urging Democrats to rewrite immigration laws if they don’t like the current ones.

Senate Democrats had been asking for a meeting with Kelly for weeks. DHS officials initially responded to their request by offering a sit-down with Thomas Homan, the ICE acting director, and Kevin McAleenan, the acting commissioner of Customs and Border Protection.

Since President Donald Trump assumed office in January, his administration has enacted new policies that give immigration enforcement officials broad discretion to arrest and deport immigrants in the United States illegally, as well as legal immigrants with criminal records.