Border czar Tom Homan got into a heated exchange with MSNBC host Mika Brzezinski on Morning Joe Tuesday, pushing back against accusations that Immigration and Customs Enforcement had “disappeared” people during immigration enforcement actions.
The fiery interview began when Brzezinski pressed Homan about whether immigrants with jobs, driver’s licenses, and children serving in the United States military should be treated as criminals if they lack legal status.
Homan emphasized that “if they’re in the country illegally, that is not okay.”
Homan argued that immigration violations are not “victimless crimes,” stressing that “millions of people [are] standing in line, doing the background investigation, paying the fees” to come legally, while others “cheated the system.”
.@RealTomHoman is COOKING on MSDNC 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/YkQHdqviUz
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Brzezinski pushed back, demanding transparency. “I’d love some transparency as to why a lot of these people have been disappeared. You say you have data, we would love to see it.”
“That is a ridiculous thing to say,” Homan shot back. “ICE is doing the same thing we’ve done for decades. We’re not ‘disappearing’ people; we’re arresting people that are in the country illegally and are a public safety threat. We know exactly who we’re going to arrest when we go look for them.”
The exchange grew more tense when Brzezinski raised concerns about ICE vehicles parked outside a Spanish-language Mass in Boston, saying such actions spread fear in immigrant communities.
“I would argue that, actually, that the ICE vehicle parked outside a Spanish mass is a frightening sight given what has happened in this country,” the MSNBC host said.
Homan countered by pointing to recent arrests of individuals charged with violent crimes, including aggravated rape and assault on minors, arguing that sanctuary policies force ICE to conduct riskier community arrests rather than detaining suspects directly in jails.
“To say that, to push that out there, puts fear in the immigrant community,” Homan responded.
Brzezinski shot back, “To park an ICE agent’s vehicle outside a Spanish Mass—” before Homan cut in, “They were on a public street, waiting to respond to a criminal alien release.”
“[Boston] Mayor Wu and Governor [Maura] Healey ought to be calling ICE and thanking them for making their streets safer… they have turned a blind eye to this as sanctuary cities and sanctuary states,” he said.
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Homan forcefully rejected the television host’s use of the term “disappeared.”
“Comments that you just made is one of the reasons why these men and women are under threat every day, not just the men and women in ICE, but their spouses and their children. They’re not disappearing people. They’re enforcing the law,” Homan said.
