Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey continues war of words against ICE

Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald on Feb 16, 2026

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BOSTON — As concerns about an ICE surge, potential nearby detention facility and World Cup attendance continue to circulate, Gov. Maura Healey spoke on the issue again and called for defunding the immigration agency.

“Right now, ICE has too much power, unbridled authority, no guardrails,” said Healey in a WCVB “On the Record” segment aired Sunday. “And it is not acting like a law enforcement agency should be acting, and that’s why I say it’s really not a law enforcement agency at this point. It’s putting people in harm’s way, and Congress needs to step in.”

Asked if ICE should be defunded, the Massachusetts governor said yes, noting the agency has “more funding than all state and local law enforcement around the country combined.”

Healey’s comments Sunday regarding immigration enforcement in Massachusetts and around the country follow news that habeas petitions from individuals detained by ICE for judges to review custody rose 12,000% in Massachusetts in 2025.

The governor said in the Sunday that the agency does not need the current funding, adding “they’re shipping new cars, new SUVS in every other week.”

“Meanwhile, we’ve got departments that are desperately needing funds,” said Healey. “We have victim services that need funds. We have FEMA money, remember, that’s been cut. I won’t even get into the cuts to health care, to research, to science that have hurt our economy here.”

In recent weeks, the New Hampshire ACLU also released documents showing plans for an ICE detention facility in southern New Hampshire.

Of plans for the detention facility, Healey released a statement Friday calling for New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte to oppose the plan. Following up on those remarks, the governor said her New Hampshire counterpart has the “authority to say no” and called the plan “crazy.”

“ICE is doing something that we’ve never seen before in this country,” said Healey. “It has devastating harm, economic harm as well, and to think that they’re going to spend money and resources to build some facility in southern New Hampshire, on our border, that’s bad for Massachusetts. It’s bad for New Hampshire, where, you know, I grew up. And it’s bad for this region.”

Asked if Massachusetts is prepared for an ICE surge, Healey cited her executive orders barring ICE from locations like churches, daycares and schools but said “my perspective on all of this is this shouldn’t be happening.”

Federal officials announced the drawdown of the ICE surge in Minneapolis and St. Paul last week, marking the end of the thousands of officers in the Minnesota cities after national outcry and the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens.

Gov. Healey also spoke to concerns for potential World Cup attendees over the state of immigration enforcement. Massachusetts is set to host seven World Cup matches over the summer, drawing people from all over the world.

“It’s going to be a huge economic boost to our state,” said Healey. “And I’m really excited about that and excited about the opportunity for Massachusetts to show ourselves out and off to the world.”

But, the governor said, she is aware “companies, people right now are not coming to the United States in the way they used to.”

“It’s a bad situation, the message that this federal administration and the president are sending to the rest of the world,” said Healey. “But I am doing all I can to champion Massachusetts and say, ‘Hey, we’re a great place to come study, to do research, to grow companies, to grow families.’ We’re not changing who we are.”

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