Incoming Trump "border czar" Tom Homan on Monday sent a warning for Democratic leaders of sanctuary cities that are vowing not to assist in mass deportations:
“If sanctuary cities don’t want to help us, then get the hell out of the way, because we're coming,” Homan said in an interview on “Fox & Friends.”
“If we can’t get assistance from New York City, I may have to — we may have to double the number of agents we send to New York City,” Homan added. “Because we're going to do the job. We’re going to do the job without you or with you.”
President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday said Homan would be his administration’s “border czar” once he is sworn into office. Homan was Trump’s acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in his first term and defended hardline immigration policies, including family separation.
Trump did not provide further details, only saying his role would include “the Southern Border, the Northern Border, all Maritime, and Aviation Security,” and that he would be in charge of all deportations. It is not clear what his official title will be, but NBC News reported that Trump will not name Homan Department of Homeland Security secretary.
Sanctuary cities, such as New York, generally refuse to work with ICE. Some exceptions include when an undocumented immigrant commits a violent crime. These cities defend their protections of undocumented immigrants as essential since many have not committed crimes outside of crossing the border without authorization, and local elected officials contend that immigrants need to be able to report crimes to local law enforcement without fearing police could turn them over for deportation.
