The passage of President Donald Trump’s comprehensive new immigration law, known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” has sparked ferocious reactions from both supporters and detractors as the political storm surrounding America’s southern border intensifies. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), a progressive firebrand, is warning the public about what she describes as an unprecedented expansion of federal immigration enforcement power. Her response is the clearest example of that battle.
Trump supporters are praising the bill, which was only signed into law last week, as a landmark move to secure the U.S. border. Ocasio-Cortez and other critics, however, contend that it creates the possibility of unbridled government power and a humanitarian crisis that is unlike anything the nation has ever experienced.
Let’s examine the bill’s contents, its backers, the reasons behind the alarm raised by opponents, and how it all connects to the greater conflict over immigration, law enforcement, and American identity.
What does “One Big Beautiful Bill” contain?
An astounding $170 billion is allotted to border security and immigration enforcement under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to official estimates. Some of its most contentious clauses are:
$45 billion for the expansion of federal prisons
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will receive an additional $30 billion in funding.
Trump’s long-promised border wall, which includes high-security checkpoints and new surveillance technology, will be completed with nearly $50 billion.
The bill’s proponents claim it gives law enforcement the means to stop what they describe as a border invasion that has overloaded the nation’s immigration system. However, the bill effectively militarizes immigration enforcement, making ICE one of the most powerful federal agencies in the country, according to critics.
The harsh criticism from AOC: “People Are Disappearing”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez sent a warning to her followers on the social media site Bluesky shortly after the bill was approved by the House.
She wrote, “I don’t think anyone is ready for what they just did with ICE.” “This budget increase is not straightforward. It is an explosion, with ICE now surpassing the combined size of the FBI, DEA, U.S. Bureau of Prisons, and others.
“It’s setting up to make what’s happening now look like child’s play,” she added in her post. Additionally, people are vanishing.
Despite not offering any concrete proof to back up her assertion, Ocasio-Cortez’s comments swiftly went viral on liberal media platforms and were applauded by activists who have long denounced ICE’s combative strategies.
Progressives are now concerned that the bill will result in widespread monitoring, mass deportations, and mass imprisonment—particularly affecting vulnerable groups like unaccompanied minors, undocumented families, and asylum seekers.
