Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free
Your guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the world
Donald Trump’s border tsar has vowed a “shock and awe” approach to deportations in the first week of the new administration, with crackdowns targeting undocumented immigrants in cities across the US.
Tom Homan said the incoming president will immediately unveil a series of executive orders ordering “targeted action” by federal officials against immigrants with criminal records.
“You’re going to see — in the first week — you’re going to see shock and awe at the border and you’re going to see it inside,” Homan told Fox News on Saturday.
“They’re going to be doing targeted enforcement. When (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) comes out, they’re going to know exactly who they’re looking for and where they’re going to find them.”
Trump made immigration a central pillar of his re-election campaign, using increasingly strong language at rallies that included accusing immigrants of “poisoning the blood of our country”.
He promised to pursue “the largest criminal justice program in American history” starting on his first day back in the White House.
“It’s going to start very early, very early,” Trump said in a separate interview with NBC on Saturday. “We have to get criminals out of our country.”
The president-elect declined to say which cities would be targeted first “because things are changing,” but Homan previously indicated that Democrat-controlled Chicago would be a “ground floor” for attacks. .
On Saturday, Homan warned Democrats in so-called “sanctuary cities” that not cooperating with ICE officials to detain immigrants with criminal records would prompt federal authorities to pursue major raids. leading to large numbers of arrests and deportations.
“These sanctuary laws will force us into communities and the result will be what they don’t want – more immigrants arrested, more supporters arrested, because they forced us into this situation.”
The orders on immigration will be part of a “record-setting number” of executive orders the incoming president has said he will sign on his first day in office, along with others on tariffs, powers and regulation.
Neither Trump nor Homan would provide specifics about what the evacuation orders would include, but people familiar with the plans said they would likely spark a debate over the president’s authority to involve the military.
“I think there’s going to be a serious discussion about whether you have the authority to send troops to the border — or send the National Guard in large numbers?” said one Republican member of Congress.
“It’s something you have to look forward to.”
