Democrats and their establishment media allies are falsely claiming that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested two “firefighters” in Washington, a sanctuary state. In reality, the two men are not firefighters, but rather illegal aliens with prior criminal records.
Last week, the establishment media went crazy over a story claiming that two firefighters were arrested by ICE agents in Bear Gulch, Washington, during an ongoing fire.
One of the arrested illegal aliens, Jose Bertin Cruz-Estrada from Mexico, has previously been charged with delivering and selling methamphetamine. Border Patrol agents have encountered Cruz-Estrada 15 times.
A federal immigration judge ordered Cruz-Estrada’s deportation in April 2015, and ICE agents carried it out on February 27, 2016. Cruz-Estrada returned to the southern border on an unknown date after being deported the previous time.
The other illegal alien arrested by ICE agents had previously been charged with illegally carrying a concealed weapon. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials told Breitbart News that the two were not firefighters and were working for a company that cut firewood rather than actively fighting the Bear Gulch fires.
The facts of the case did not prevent Democrats from using the arrests as a false talking point, which the establishment media eagerly picked up.
According to NBC News, “Trump’s immigration crackdown sweeps up 2 firefighters battling a wildfire in Washington state,” while Reuters reports, “Two firefighters held at Washington ICE detention center amid wildfire, US representative says.”
Democrats were quick to jump on the unfounded claims.
“Donald Trump ran his campaign by sending out the worst of the worst,” Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) wrote on X. “I’m not sure who’s more the best of the best than our firefighters, actively fighting the largest fire in Washington.”
Rep. Emily Randall (D-WA) told Reuters that ICE agents may be trying to hide information about the arrests from her.
Rep. Andrea Salinas (D-OR) also stated on X that she had extensive knowledge of one of the illegal aliens arrested, referring to him as a firefighter and omitting his criminal history.
Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) and the Democrats on the Senate Energy Committee also made the false claim on their X accounts.
“The administration’s immigration policy is fundamentally flawed. Murray wrote: “Trump has wrongfully detained lawful green card holders and even citizens.” “No one should think this was necessary. These firefighters risked their lives for all of us, and Trump has detained them.”
“Arresting firefighters who are trying to save lives makes Americans LESS safe,” Democrats on the Senate Energy Committee wrote on X.
According to DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin, this is not the first time the establishment media has withheld critical information from a story.
“The two illegal aliens apprehended were not ‘firefighters’ as the media claimed, nor were they responding to any active emergency — in fact, they were criminal illegal aliens,” reported McLaughlin. “Both had previous arrests. One for drug trafficking and one for illegally transporting a firearm.”
“Once again, the media ran with a false narrative and left out the key details,” she said. “When will the media stop peddling these false news stories to demonize our law enforcement?”
