EAST BRUNSWICK - Mayor Brad Cohen - responsible for 180 miles of road here in his hometown - in the bitter cold of a January afternoon with snow still on the ground but the streets cleared, considered the larger terrain of the 12th Congressional District.

Cohen's running for the seat that retiring U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-12) plans to vacate at the end of this year.

Amid fallout from Saturday's killing of ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minneapolis, news came in from Washington, D.C. via Politico:

Eight Republicans joined every Senate Democrat to block sweeping government funding legislation from advancing Thursday amid ongoing negotiations around a potential offramp to avert a lengthy shutdown of several agencies.

The Senate voted 55-45 against moving forward with a six-bill package that would fund, among other things, the departments of Homeland Security, State and Health and Human Services, as well as the Pentagon.

"I think right now the Democrats have limited options at their disposal to put through changes, and so right now that is the right thing to do," said Cohen, referring to withholding DHS funds. "We need the ability to deport people - but in a humane manner. Don't get rid of the department but reform the manner [in which it does its job]."

Does he want to see DHS Commissioner Kristi Noem go?

"If this is the type of behavior, it tells me everything I need to know about her, said Cohen, who acknowledged people's "sense of disgust for the way folks are being treated and the manner in which people are being persecuted. This is a bad reflection on this country and what we stand for and the fact that we are a country of immigrants.

"We all agree people who are criminals should be deported and system should sift them out, but the manner in which you treat people speaks a lot about character and us as a country, and I think it's terrible. We have a mechanism in place protects the right to protect. It's the first amendment of the Constitution."

In this InsiderNJ interview, Mayor Cohen also addressed Congress' critical oversight role in the maintenance of Venezuela following the Trump Administration's removal for prosecution of President Nicolas Maduro.

"We took out the top of the iceberg, but the iceberg is still there," said the mayor. "Is there a plan to eliminate the entire narcotic network that is there? The drugs affecting our kids are primarily fentanyl, which is primarily coming out of Mexico. Are we invading there next?"

In addition, Cohen discusses President Donald J. Trump's address to Europe last week in Davos, Switzerland.

"It's embarrassing for us to have a president so obviously antagonistic toward Europe," he said. "We have a president that likes to cozy up to dictators. Frankly, I think that's what he wants to be. We're making some very foolish moves that will not bode well for us if we have a doctrine of going wherever we want. How does that stop Putin from going into Europe? What about China going into Taiwan?"

To hear Mayor Cohen discuss those issues and more, including all the latest developments in the evolving CD-12 contest, please see below: