President Donald Trump drew audible gasps from the assembled Congressional members as he announced that he had asked Homeland Security to create an office called VOICE: Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement.

It was hinted earlier in the day that VOICE would work with ICE as a liaison with “known victims of crimes committed by removable aliens,” presumably to highlight specific crimes when immigrants were involved.

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While some Congressional members gasped, those following Trump’s speech and commenting on Twitter noted that VOICE would be used as a propaganda tool to whip up anti-immigrant hysteria, with one person noting this is “how genocides begin.”

Read the tweets below:

"I have ordered [DHS] to create an office to serve American victims. The office is called 'VOICE': Victims Of Immigration Crime Engagement." pic.twitter.com/e5mvnndkLN — CBS News (@CBSNews) March 1, 2017

What genius in the West Wing came up with the Gotham Cityesque agency called VOICE? Gonna go ahead and guess it was this guy: #JointAddress pic.twitter.com/Aq997jJszh — Joy Reid (@JoyAnnReid) March 1, 2017

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VOICE could not sound more sinister. Like something @warrenellis would come up with after some bad clams. #JointSession — Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) March 1, 2017

With the creation of #VOICE , Trump continues his nativist demonization of the immigrant community. Dangerous. Baseless. Shameful. — León Krauze (@LeonKrauze) March 1, 2017

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Wow VOICE is racist propaganda and how genocides begin. #Jointsession — Tina Dupuy (@TinaDupuy) March 1, 2017

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Trump's VOICE is a foul way to vilify immigrants as criminals; an ext of his slur against Mexicans as rapists & murderers. #JointAddress — David Leopold (@DavidLeopold) March 1, 2017

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Who TF is supporting VOICE? What makes the crimes committed against them any worst then those committed by Americans?…#JointAddress — Jean-Carlo Palacios (@jcpala89) March 1, 2017

VOICE is so racist and un-American. Disgusting and shameful. Democrats better attack that "task force" #JointAddress — Colleen Thompson (@7colleen11) March 1, 2017

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@samsteinhp I'm not a liberal, but I think the speech was full of promises without a plan. Offended by VOICE. All victims need advocates. — SJPrice (@sjprice528) March 1, 2017

So Trump now saying victims of crimes committed by natural born citizens are not as important as those by immigrants cause, u know, hate. — Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) March 1, 2017

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