“Hands off the Golden Bear”: Garamendi, Carbajal Demand DHS Not Consider Deportations on Ships

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressmen John Garamendi (CA-08) and Salud Carbajal (CA-24), two senior members of the House Armed Services Committee and Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, demanded that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin discard any plans to use ships for deportation. They cited “enormous operational, safety and legal challenges” and warned that deportations by sea would “take days” and “require many security personnel and cost the taxpayer millions of dollars.” Garamendi and Carbajal’s demands come after New York Times reporting revealed that DHS is considering using ships for mass deportations and identified Cal Poly Maritime Academy’s training ship, the Golden Bear , as a possible vessel. “Mark my words, Donald Trump, Markwayne Mullin, and ICE will never use the Golden Bear for their mass deportation agenda,” said Congressman Garamendi . “Not only is deporting migrants by ship impractical, but it’s also deeply inhumane. We have already seen how Trump’s reckless diversion of our government and military resources to support immigration enforcement costs our military readiness. This move would be the same for our sealift capacity. I’m proud to stand with Congressman Carbajal on this issue and I will continue to use every lever of oversight at my disposal to make sure we halt Trump and Mullin’s ICE from escalating their already inhumane and cruel mass deportation agenda. Hands of the Golden Bear.” “If the Trump administration follows through on this proposal, it would represent another escalation of their brutal immigration enforcement tactics. ICE already operates without sufficient transparency or public accountability, and deploying maritime vessels as floating prisons will only open the door to potentially more abuses. As the top Democrat overseeing the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation Subcommittee and a Senior Member of the Armed Services Committee, I am proud to stand with Congressman John Garamendi and my colleagues in opposing the use of the Golden Bear — or any vessel — for mass deportations,” said Congressman Carbajal . Garamendi and Carbajal’s letter is the latest oversight action addressing President Donald Trump’s misuse of the military for his mass deportation agenda. On December 10, 2025, Congressman John Garamendi (D-CA-08) and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) released a report detailing the Trump administration’s diversion of funds and resources from the Department of Defense (DoD) to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for immigration enforcement. In January 2025, after discovering that military planes from Travis Air Force Base were used to deport undocumented immigrants, Congressman Garamendi demanded answers from the Department of Defense. After Garamendi pushed back, DHS and the DoD later moved away from using military aircraft for deportations. In February 2025, Garamendi demanded answers about the Trump administration’s attempt to divert much-needed medical personnel to the Guantanamo Bay detention facility. After the letter was sent, the military canceled its orders. In May 2025, after plans were floated to turn Travis into a mass migrant detention center, Garamendi and Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA-04) pushed back. DHS later dropped its plan to turn the military base into a detention center. Full letter can be found HERE . ###