Leland Vittert and Democratic congressional candidate debate ICE raids

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(NewsNation) — Democratic congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh and “On Balance” host Leland Vittert hotly debated the realities of ICE raids during Monday night’s show.

On Sept. 19, Abughazaleh shared a video on X ostensibly showing an ICE agent picking her up before throwing her to the ground after she was blocking them. She told NewsNation that bruises were “all up her side,” but she is now OK.

Abughazaleh claimed ICE agents “are kidnapping people, entire families, naked, zip-tying their hands and throwing them into U-Haul trucks.”

Some of her claims are currently being investigated. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, per The Associated Press, directed state agencies to investigate claims that children were zip-tied and detained separately from their parents, saying “military-style tactics” shouldn’t be used on children.

Vittert rebuked Abughazaleh’s assertion that it is an injustice family members have been unable to give medication to detained loved ones when showing up at ICE processing centers.

“The law is pretty clear,” Vittert said. Anyone who shows up to a prison, demanding to see a loved one inside and delivering medicine isn’t going to be allowed in, “and if I try to push my way in, I’m going to get arrested. I’m wondering why you all think that because you’re protesting ICE, that you somehow have special privileges?”

Abughazaleh countered, claiming ICE agents told those people they were allowed to bring medicine to the facility.

On Balance with Leland Vittert

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