For Florida State Senator Ileana Garcia, the Trump administration’s hardline immigration agenda has crossed a line she can no longer ignore. Once a passionate supporter of Donald Trump and a co-founder of the national “Latinas for Trump” movement, Garcia is now openly warning that the Republican Party risks losing the upcoming midterm elections if it does not rethink its approach.

Garcia, a Cuban American lawmaker who represents parts of Miami-Dade County, described the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse killed by Border Patrol agents during a protest in Minneapolis, as “abhorrent.” She said the incident symbolized how aggressive enforcement has shifted from controversial to intolerable.

Her concerns are not abstract. Garcia recalled being questioned about her citizenship by a Transportation Security Administration officer at an airport after speaking Spanish, despite being born in Miami. She said she now worries that her adult son could be stopped by immigration agents simply because he looks Hispanic. Constituents, she added, routinely approach her for help locating relatives detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

In an interview, Garcia said the party must be willing to correct course or face electoral consequences. She predicted Republicans would pay a steep political price if current policies continue. In her view, the administration has gone far beyond border security, embracing tactics that traumatize families and communities.

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Garcia placed much of the blame on Stephen Miller, the president’s deputy chief of staff and key architect of immigration policy. She accused him of driving strategies such as aggressive street arrests and attempts to deport unaccompanied minors from foster care. While she stopped short of absolving Trump, she argued that Miller now wields far more influence than during the president’s first term.

The White House declined to respond directly to Garcia’s criticism, instead pointing to comments from the press secretary, who said no one in the administration wants to see people harmed and blamed the Minneapolis shooting on resistance by Democratic leaders.

Garcia’s stance is striking given her political journey. In 2016, she left a career in Spanish-language media to help mobilize Latino support for Trump, then joined his first administration at the Department of Homeland Security. She supported border controls and the proposed border wall at the time. She said she believed enforcement would focus on criminals and border management, not long-settled immigrants or those fleeing unstable regimes.

She has been particularly disturbed by the deportation of Cubans with decades-long ties to the United States and migrants from countries like Venezuela who had been granted temporary legal status. Such actions, she said, are senseless and cruel.

Her criticism extends beyond immigration. Garcia accused the administration of misrepresenting the state of the economy, saying everyday costs tell a different story than official rhetoric. She described herself as a truth-teller in a party where many, she believes, are afraid to speak honestly.

Despite receiving threats and warnings that her stance could invite a primary challenge, Garcia remains defiant. What frightens her most, she said, is not political backlash, but the possibility of her son being stopped in the street. In her words, that fear says more about the current moment than any campaign slogan.