A Democrat running for New York’s 7th Congressional District has pledged to dismantle and abolish ICE and to open borders. Her campaign platform emphasizes immigration reform that legalizes the status of millions of immigrant Americans. The candidate has not addressed that her father works for an engineering firm involved in Border Patrol and Department of Homeland Security projects in western Texas. Those projects include contracts for building and upgrading a large border facility in Marfa, later known as “Big Bend,” which has become a center for immigration enforcement. In 2025, soldiers were deployed to the facility, and apprehensions reportedly fell sharply compared with prior fiscal years.
"Socialist Claire Valdez, who is backed by the Big Apple mayor and US Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) to run in New York's 7th Congressional District, has pledged on the campaign trail to open up borders and "fight to dismantle and abolish ICE." But she has made no mention that her father, Larry Valdez, works for engineering firm Parkhill Smith & Cooper, which has been responsible for a myriad of Border Patrol projects in western Texas."
"Her father's firm went back in 2011 to add over $72,000 in security upgrades to the site - now known as "Big Bend." The facility has since become a hotbed for immigration enforcement under President Trump. The Trump administration sent 500 soldiers to the facilities in 2025, resulting in a 74% decrease in apprehensions from the two previous fiscal years."
""In Congress, Claire Valdez will fight to dismantle and abolish ICE. She will push for real immigration reform that legalizes the status of millions of immigrant Americans," her website says. Parkhill's website also boasts that the company - where Valdez is the longest-tenured employee - designed the "Falcon Lakes Project" in Norma, Oklahoma, for the Department of Homeland Security."
""The Falcon Lakes Project for the US Department of Homeland Security, led by Parkhill's skilled survey team, involved navigating strict security clearances and technology restrictions, such as drone prohibitions," the firm wrote. Valdez said her father had no involvement in the two projects cited by The Post. She noted that his work focus"
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