It looks like Rahm Emanuel, the former Chicago mayor and Obama staffer, is gearing up for a run at the White House in 2028. Yesterday, Politico wrote a fawning piece about him eating a salad, and now Axios is reporting that Emanuel is trying to set himself apart from the rest of the Democratic primary candidates by announcing plans for diverting ICE funding.
Scoop: Rahm Emanuel announces plan to divert ICE money to community colleges https://t.co/ktxo6Mzbm3
— Axios (@axios) March 31, 2026
Rahm Emanuel wants to shift billions of dollars from building new ICE facilities to funding community colleges — arguing they'll become more critical as AI disrupts the job market.
Why it matters: It's Emanuel's latest attempt to get ahead of other potential 2028 candidates with early policy proposals, especially on AI, tech and education.
Driving the news: Emanuel — former mayor of Chicago, White House chief of staff, House Democratic Caucus chair and U.S. ambassador to Japan — is proposing to take 20% of the $38.3 billion the Trump administration plans to spend on ICE detention centers and divert it to community colleges.
- "The priority for Americans should be education, not detention," Emanuel wrote.
- "As the explosive growth of artificial intelligence is poised to disrupt the job market, the nation's more than 1,000 community colleges — located in every region of the nation — can and will play a central role in preparing Americans for successful middle-class jobs," he added.
Democrats have made it very clear that illegal immigrants, not Americans, will be their priority if they regain power in November.
They will defund DHS and abolish ICE, and throw open our borders to all illegal immigrants without vetting or concern for the safety and security of Americans.
Rahm Emanuel announces plan to de facto amnesty the tens of millions of Illegals allowed into America under Biden, and to force American taxpayers to give these Illegals free college education. ... Fixed it for you, @axios.
— 603IronMarshal2 (@603IronMarshal2) March 31, 2026
That's the honest story here.
it's fun to announce thingshttps://t.co/7A7oUxOsES
— Andrew Kaczynski (@KFILE) March 31, 2026
Yes, that's it.
@RahmEmanuel wants to incentivize open borders then use American tax dollars to provide community college for non-citizens. While allowing terror cells, drug cartels, and human trafficking to proliferate. You know who else supports that? Russia & China https://t.co/wYuGRZ5HuZ
— DeAnna Calderón (@DCinTejas) March 31, 2026
That's exactly what he's doing.
A common link that connects all Democrats - from "moderates" like Emanuel to lefties like AOC - is opposition to border enforcement. Open borders is a Democratic dogma. https://t.co/GnNxwPy4cP
— Mooseman (@MooseMan9) March 31, 2026
Open borders is a plank in the Democratic Party platform.
The most “trying to make fetch happen” a** campaign in waiting I’ve ever seen. https://t.co/R2pHP6MjUG
— tré easton (@treeaston) March 31, 2026
Any of the names floated for President right now will likely not be the nominee in 2028. This cycle happens almost every election year. Those with name recognition get early media coverage, only to flame out before or during the primaries.
But that's not the big story here. The big story is that Democrats are openly making it part of their campaign platform to defund ICE and open our borders, despite acts of terrorism on the part of illegal immigrants, rampant crime from illegal immigrants, and billions of dollars spent on housing, food, education, and medical care for illegal immigrants.