Since taking office in early 2021, Nancy Mace, a Republican congresswoman from South Carolina, has turned heads with her fiery rhetoric on immigration. She has vocally defended her position against transgender rights. Recently, she expressed a disturbing enjoyment in watching videos of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detaining individuals, prompting criticism from various political corners. Her comments have subsequently renewed her long-running war with Sarah McBride, the first openly transgender member of Congress.
In a recent television appearance, Mace stated, “I have to tell you – one of my favorite things to watch on YouTube these days are … court hearings where illegals are in court and ICE shows up to drag them out of court and deport them.” She argued that these kinds of moves are necessary to keep our communities safe and save American lives. “I can think of nothing more American today than keeping our streets safer by getting those violent criminals out of the United States of America, and we all have Donald J. Trump to thank for it,” she added.
Mace’s vocal opposition to allowing transgender women access to women’s restrooms has drawn sharp criticism as well. Her weekly attacks on McBride stole the media spotlight from her legislative agenda. Among her proposals is an anti-sanctuary cities bill to defund municipalities and remove tax incentives from cities that restrict cooperation with federal immigration authorities. This legislation is an example of her hard line on immigration policies. Most importantly, it has caught the right chord among angry, conservative Republican base voters in South Carolina.
The congresswoman’s controversial remarks about ICE come amid heightened scrutiny of the agency’s actions. During President Biden’s administration, ICE issued fewer than 9,500 immigration-related detainers in New York City, compared to more than 6,000 during the first seven months of Trump’s second term. Critics said that Mace’s statements are symptomatic of a larger pattern in which punitive, blame-focused approaches have been preferred over empathetic solutions.
Back in February, Mace burned up the House floor. She accused four men, including her ex-fiancé, of rape and sexual assault, calling her powerful nearly hourlong testimony earned her fierce media attention. Displaying photos and naming her alleged abusers, she declared, “You’ve booked yourself a one-way ticket to hell. It is nonstop. There are no connections.”
These allegations and her direct style have resulted in protests and support. Some defenders have painted her as a leader in the conservative push for draconian immigration policies, but critics have called her rhetoric inhumane. Richard Angwin of Indivisible Angelino Heights took issue with her support for ICE’s deportation tactics. He argued that it exposes her as a hypocritical, self-serving opportunist who cares more about performative cruelty than constitutional due process and American fairness.
Mace’s remarks have earned her not just rebukes from Democrats, but backlash from her state’s Republican delegation. Former Republican congressman Joe Walsh remarked that “getting off on watching YouTube clips of immigrants at their court hearings grabbed by ICE is twisted & cruel.” Those types of comments reflect a widening schism in the GOP over the party’s immigration strategy and approach to undocumented people.
As Mace sticks to her guns on these hot button issues, she risks major political backlash. She has dropped breadcrumbs about a possible run for South Carolina governor in 2026. Such a bold move would quickly raise her profile in any national conversation on immigration and LGBTQ+ rights.