Mobile billboard to circle St. Paul highlighting cost of mass deportations for St. Paul taxpayers

Today, the Minnesota AFL-CIO’s mobile billboard campaign will drive through St. Paul to warn residents how working people across the state could foot the bill for President Trump’s mass deportation plan. A new calculator developed by the Economic Policy Institute finds taxpayers in Minnesota could pay over $4.4 billion, or $2,050 per taxpayer, to fund ICE operations through the remainder of Trump’s term.
 
“As Twin Cities residents struggle to balance everyday essentials while Trump and federal elected officials help the country’s wealthiest make their next billion, the billboard highlights how increased ICE presence financially impacts every taxpayer’s budget,” according to the Minnesota AFL-CIO. “Advocates will hold Trump and federal leaders accountable for putting the costs of mass deportations on working people, especially after Operation Metro Surge separated families and incited fear and violence across Minnesota.
 
“Instead of spending $4.4 billion in taxpayer dollars on mass deportation, this budget could fund over 130,101 Medicaid recipients, 14,963 public school teachers, over 105,139 Head Start slots, 2,278,050 SNAP recipients, or over 82,000 veterans’ medical care. Prioritizing federal funding for ICE Operations come as Trump’s budget law cut nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid, the Affordable Care Act, and SNAP to benefit large corporations and the ultra-wealthy.”