Gregg Mele, lone Republican running to represent N.J.–12, discusses ICE, ‘parental rights’

Gregg Mele, a New Jersey lawyer and professor with a background in finance, is running uncontested for the Republican nomination in the congressional election for Princeton’s district.

This race is Mele’s seventh time running for public office across multiple districts. In different races, he has run as an Independent and as a Libertarian, before switching to the Republican party. 

In an interview with The Daily Princetonian, Mele described border security and greater “parental rights” in education as two major priorities in his campaign.

He particularly highlighted the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in his discussion. 

“ICE is doing the same stuff they did under Obama and Bush and even Clinton, but somehow people got the idea that it’s okay to step in between them and somebody,” Mele told the ‘Prince.’ “There’s been stories trying to be proposed about, ‘Oh, they’re picking up people right off the street, whoever they are, and checking later,’ and that’s not been the case.”

Over the past year, the daily number of ICE arrests has been significantly higher than over the past decade, and the number of people in ICE detention has reached the highest in the agency’s history. ICE has also been accused of racially profiling people for detention.

ICE detained two men in Princeton in early January, and hundreds of people attended an “ICE Out” protest in February at the Fountain of Freedom near Robertson Hall. Governor Mikie Sherrill also issued an executive order in February to limit actions of federal immigration officers on state property. 

Mele also criticized people for protesting at the location of ICE activity. When asked what should be done when ICE actions turn deadly, Mele asserted, “Sometimes it is the person breaking the law and getting in the way where they shouldn’t, and sometimes there’s a reaction that’s overreacting on the part of ICE.” 

Federal immigration agents have killed multiple American citizens over the past year, including Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. “The people who are protesting who then jump in the middle — I don’t understand. I knew at four years old: never get in the way of law enforcement,” Mele said.

He also expressed skepticism of “sanctuary” policies that protect undocumented immigrants.

“I don’t see how sanctuary is legal … at a minimum, we have to find the people who have come in without proper vetting and at least vet them.”

Regarding the economy, Mele said that he generally supports Trump’s policies.

“One thing I always was a believer in was smaller government, more privatization, that kind of mix as much as possible. And of course, there’s things that you can’t replace what the government is doing with it.”

Mele said that he viewed the economic policies introduced by Trump in his first and second terms as being “very helpful across the country,” he said. 

He added that political polarization is the driving force behind negative public perception of Trump’s economic policy. 

“As soon as somebody has this hatred for anybody — like many now have for Trump, for example — you’re getting away from being analytical of what’s going on. The national economy is doing much better,” Mele said.

Despite volatility due in part to frequent changes in tariff rates and the war in Iran, the stock market has generally risen under the current administration, with the S&P 500 hitting record highs this month. GDP has also continued to grow at a moderate pace.

He further stated that New Jersey’s economy is “the worst in the country right now.”

“How does that happen? Because we have a governor that won’t accept the no tax on tips, or overtime, or whatever was set as a federal standard,” he continued. “Well, obviously it’s going to be worse here, then. The unemployment [rate] is twice the national average.”

New Jersey’s unemployment rate of 5.2 percent is not at twice the national average, but it is significantly higher than the country’s overall unemployment rate of 4.3 percent. A bill introduced in the state legislature in 2024 that would exclude tips from the state gross income tax has not yet been voted on.

Mele said that he believes U.S. action against Iran is justified, but he is against the deployment of American troops to the country. 

His position differs from several of the Democratic candidates, who expressed hesitations about any American involvement in the Middle East. The University community has also had ongoing dialogues about the war in Iran.

“I feel like the military operation part, I would want to see, if anything, something that doesn’t involve [American] boots on the ground,” he added.

However, he also said that “If there’s an imminent threat coming, we do have every right to go and stop the threat.”

Mele further discussed the importance of education. He noted that he was the first person in his family to go to college and called himself “somewhat of a poster boy for the American dream.”

He subsequently emphasized his focus on “parental rights” in their children’s education. Mele condemned the idea of schools withholding information from parents, saying that “keeping any secrets from parents [...] used to be child endangerment. That used to be a criminal offense.” 

His words come at a national moment when schools are deciding whether to tell parents if their child identifies as transgender at the school.

“Parents know best how their children will react to things,” he said, adding that he believes some teachers are not qualified.  

“They just want to change as many students as they can change, and they’re not as worried about how they learn, and that’s why the schools are doing so much worse the last several years than before.” 

In a follow-up email to the ‘Prince,’ Mele wrote that he “did also mean to reference school choice. In addition to trimming the administrative fat in most school districts, I feel competition breeds excellence in any field of endeavor, and the lack of it is another big reason for public school decline.”

Emily Murphy is a senior News writer, senior Copy editor, and chief correspondent for the N.J.–12 Congressional election. She is from New York City and can be reached at emurphy[at]dailyprincetonian.com. 

Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.