Democrats focus their priorities on the wrong ICE
By Michael Phillips | MDBayNews
Maryland’s Democratic leadership has once again chosen performance over priorities.
Over the past several weeks, officials including Jamie Raskin and Chris Van Hollen have sounded the alarm over immigration enforcement actions under President Trump’s second administration. The rhetoric has been breathless. The insinuation? That federal enforcement is run by monsters. That Maryland is under siege. That lives are being lost.
But peel back the headlines.
As of February 21, 2026:
Zero people have died in Maryland as a result of immigration enforcement actions.
Not one.
There was a controversial ICE-involved shooting in Glen Burnie in December. The driver was wounded. No fatalities. There have been national incidents elsewhere. But in Maryland? None.
Meanwhile, here is what has happened in Maryland this winter:
According to the Maryland Department of Health, through February 14, 2026:
55 Marylanders have died from cold-related causes this winter season.
Fifty-five.
That number comes from official Weekly Cold-Related Illness Surveillance Reports based on data from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
Let’s break that down:
- 37 of the 55 victims were men (67%)
- 34 were ages 45–64
- 28 died outdoors
- 24 died indoors
- 8 were presumed homeless
- Deaths spiked after January’s snowstorm and February cold snaps
- Many were seniors
- Significant concentration in Baltimore
This isn’t hypothetical. It isn’t partisan. It isn’t rhetorical.
It’s bodies.
Where Is the Outrage?
Where are the emergency press conferences from Raskin?
Where are the floor speeches from Van Hollen?
Where are the viral threads demanding answers?
Where is the moral thunder?
If Democrats are going to accuse federal immigration enforcement of being inhumane — even in the absence of fatalities in Maryland — then surely 55 freezing deaths inside our own state merit at least equal outrage.
Or do they not poll as well?
The Real Maryland Crisis
Cold-related deaths don’t trend on X. They don’t trigger cable news chyrons. They don’t generate national fundraising emails.
But they expose something uncomfortable.
Some of these deaths occurred outdoors among the homeless. Others happened indoors — where people either lacked sufficient heat or were in vulnerable living conditions.
Maryland has some of the highest utility costs in the region.
Maryland has persistent homelessness in Baltimore and Prince George’s County.
Maryland has seniors on fixed incomes facing rising heating bills.
If 28 people froze outdoors, that is a homelessness and shelter capacity issue.
If 24 died indoors, that is a heating affordability and vulnerability issue.
These are governance issues.
State-level issues.
Legislative issues.
But instead of focusing on the structural failures that led to 55 cold-related deaths, Maryland’s political class prefers to grandstand over federal enforcement actions that — at least in this state — have not resulted in a single fatality.
Moral Selectivity
There is a pattern emerging.
When a narrative fits the preferred storyline — “Trump enforcement equals cruelty” — outrage is immediate.
When the problem points inward — homelessness, heating costs, state policy priorities — the volume lowers.
Maryland leaders have no shortage of statements when it comes to federal politics. But when Marylanders freeze to death, the silence is harder to ignore.
This isn’t an argument against oversight of immigration enforcement. Transparency matters. Scrutiny matters.
But moral credibility requires consistency.
If you’re going to accuse others of running systems that endanger lives, you should probably address the 55 lives lost under your own watch first.
Accountability Starts at Home
The winter isn’t over.
The numbers may rise.
The Maryland Department of Health continues to update surveillance reports weekly. Cold-related deaths could climb further before spring.
The question is simple:
Will Maryland’s leaders treat these deaths with the same urgency they reserve for press releases about federal immigration enforcement?
Or will 55 Marylanders quietly become a footnote?
Priorities reveal values.
Right now, Maryland’s priorities look badly misplaced.
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