White House border czar Tom Homan said a surge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers will be sent to New York City, blaming Gov. Kathy Hochul's law limiting state cooperation with ICE.
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White House border czar Tom Homan vowed Tuesday that a surge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers will be deployed to New York City, without specifying a timeline for the operation.
"It's coming," Homan said during an appearance on Fox News. "I just reviewed an operational plan. I'm not going to tell you exactly when it's going to happen, but it's coming." He described the planned deployment as bringing "more ICE agents than you've ever seen" to the city.
Homan attributed the promised surge to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul's decision to sign legislation that ended agreements between state and local law enforcement and ICE. The law prevents state and local authorities from cooperating with ICE to facilitate the expulsion of immigrants arrested and jailed for crimes.
"In New York, our local police need to be focused on local crimes not filling up our jails with people who ICE had taken off streets, out of our schools, out of our pizzerias, out of our homes, and I'm not going to be part of that," Hochul said Monday, telling ICE to "do your job somewhere else." She added that New York would assist with criminal cases but would not participate in civil immigration enforcement.
Hochul had previously stated in May that President Donald Trump himself said he would not send a surge of ICE agents to New York unless she requested it. "I'm not asking," she said at that time. She also emphasized that New York is not a "sanctuary state for criminals" and that her measure was designed to ensure local police and jails focus on local crime prevention.
When asked about a $70 billion immigration bill in Congress, Homan said the funds would be used to lift the overtime waiver cap for ICE officers, provide operational support, and pay vendors and contractors.
Homan also stated that the planned surge would not resemble the aggressive immigration tactics deployed in Minnesota earlier this year, which were blamed for the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis. "You will not see a Minnesota," he said.
Hochul's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Homan's latest statements.
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