Sen. Tammy Duckworth Ladda (Tammy) Tammy DuckworthMcConnell focuses on confirming judicial nominees with COVID-19 talks stalled Biden courts veterans amid fallout from Trump military controversies John Fogerty: 'Confounding' that Trump campaign played 'Fortunate Son' at rally MORE (D-Ill.) on Sunday said she does not support abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“[ICE] reflects the policies of the White House, of the president,” Duckworth said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

“If you abolish ICE now, you still have the same president with the same failed policies,” she said. “Whatever you replace it with is going to still reflect what this president wants to do.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Abolishing ICE is quickly becoming a test for Democrats following New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's surprise victory in a Democratic primary. Ocasio-Cortez, who ran her campaign partially on the platform, sparked a wave of Democratic lawmakers, including Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand Kirsten GillibrandSunday shows preview: Justice Ginsburg dies, sparking partisan battle over vacancy before election Suburban moms are going to decide the 2020 election Jon Stewart urges Congress to help veterans exposed to burn pits MORE (D-N.Y.), Elizabeth Warren Elizabeth WarrenDimon: Wealth tax 'almost impossible to do' CNN's Don Lemon: 'Blow up the entire system' remark taken out of context Democrats shoot down talk of expanding Supreme Court MORE (D-Mass.) and Kamala Harris Kamala HarrisHarris faces pivotal moment with Supreme Court battle Nearly 40 Democratic senators call for climate change questions in debates Joe Biden has long forgotten North Carolina: Today's visit is too late MORE (D-Calif.), to come out this week in support of abolishing ICE.

Though immigration activists have long rallied around dismantling the agency, the idea gained new ground this weekend during a rash of protests over President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE’s “zero tolerance” immigration policy. The policy has drawn widespread criticism for leading to the separation of thousands of migrant families.

Duckworth, an outspoken advocate for immigration reform, participated in a protest on Capitol Hill on Thursday, criticizing the Trump administration’s policy of separating migrant families apprehended at the U.S.–Mexico border.

Holding her baby, the senator gave an impassioned speech at the demonstration, later telling CNN, "I could only imagine what it would be like to have my daughter — my breastfeeding child — ripped away from me the way some of these other moms' babies have been."

On Saturday, tens of thousands of protesters descended on the nation's capital to demonstrate against the president's immigration policies. Hundreds of "Families Belong Together" protests broke out in all 50 states, with many protesters calling for the elimination of ICE.