SEOBLOGREEN - The money is complicated. It always is in politics. But this time, the money comes with a heavy moral weight: it is cash from companies that profit from detaining migrants. Private prison contractors. ICE contractors. And the Democrats are wrestling with it. A very public, very painful reckoning is underway.
The Irony of the Cash Flow
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The numbers are not massive by DNC standards, but the optics are toxic. From 2021 through 2025, private prison companies like CoreCivic and GEO Group donated about \$58,000 to Democratic Congress members. That is a fraction of the half-million dollars given to Republicans, but the Democratic Party is supposed to be the party of immigration reform. They fight against the very detention machine these companies operate. This is the heart of the dilemma.
A Democrat takes a check from a GEO Group executive. The same Democrat then votes for a bill to improve detention center conditions. Or, perhaps, they just stay silent on the issue. The contradiction is stark. It is a deep, internal conflict for the party. Progressives demand an end to private, for-profit detention. They see it as fundamentally exploitative. But the money keeps flowing, small amounts to many, softening the edges of their opposition. It's the slow, quiet erosion of principle.
Whispers in the Capitol Halls
Go inside the halls of Congress. You hear the whispers. A young progressive staffer vents frustration. "How can we talk about humanitarian crises at the border when we take their money?" they ask. Meanwhile, a veteran member of Congress shrugs. "It's how the game is played. Everyone gives. You can't unilaterally disarm." This is the human element of the political machine. Survival versus morality. The political calculation often wins.
For the companies—CoreCivic, GEO Group, and others—it is a simple business strategy. They need access. They need a seat at the table. A donation is an investment. It is an insurance policy. It doesn't buy a vote outright. It buys goodwill. It buys a moment of hesitation. It buys the ability to have a phone call returned. That's worth more than the check itself.
The Battlefront: From California to D.C.
The fight is visible at the state level. California is often the testing ground. Lawmakers there are pushing back hard. A new bill, AB 1633, proposes a 50% tax on the profits of corporations running ICE detention facilities in the state. This is a direct hit at CoreCivic and GEO Group, who reportedly earned a combined \$500 million last year from their facilities in California alone. The message is clear: if you profit from this suffering, the state will claim its share, or you can leave.
This state action is the kind of moral clarity many national Democrats want to embrace. But the national picture is muddied by national politics. The party needs money. The stakes are too high. A recent report highlighted how some Democratic donors were disillusioned after the 2024 elections, leaving the DNC with money problems. Any source of funds, even if questionable, can look tempting when the war chest is low.
The Personal Cost of Hypocrisy
The story is not just about millions of dollars. It's about people. The detainees. Over 70,000 people are currently held by ICE. Most are in private facilities. In a recent period, 71% of the 38 people who died in ICE custody were held in for-profit centers. This is the true cost. This is what the money supports.
When a politician accepts money from a company tied to these conditions, they become a tiny piece of the machine. The narrative Dahlan Iskan favors is about the individual choice. The small, often unseen decision that has massive consequences. Do you refuse the check, even if it means losing a close race? Or do you take it, rationalize it, and promise yourself you'll fight harder later?
For the Democratic Party, this reckoning is critical. It is a test of their soul. They must decide if they are the party of reform and human rights, or just another faction beholden to corporate money, regardless of the ethical swamp it drags them into. The answer will be seen in their future actions. Not their words.
Source: politico.com
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