'Un-American': Governor questions Trump border czar’s 'authority' to carry out deportations

11 December 2024

Tom Homan, who President-elect Donald Trump tapped as his incoming "border czar," has indicated he plans to deport millions of undocumented immigrants with or without the help of local officials. But one Democratic governor is now saying Homan may not have the "authority" to do so.

Politico reported Wednesday that Illinois Democratic Governor J.B. Pritzker is suggesting that Homan may not get much help from his administration if he plans to deport immigrants in the Prairie State. He noted that Homan's position within the Trump administration isn't one that requires Senate confirmation.

"Being a border czar is not an official position in the government, and it will be up to the President of the United States and up to the leaders of the Customs and Border Patrol to make decisions about how we'll manage the border," Pritzker told Politico.

While he was on the campaign trail, Trump repeatedly promised to kick mass deportations into high gear immediately after taking office. He's also not ruled out deploying the U.S. military on American soil to assist with his deportation program (which has already drawn criticism from one Senate Republican). Additionally, the president-elect has proposed deploying National Guard troops from Republican-led states to round up and detain immigrants.

Pritzker told Politico that he wouldn't authorize the Illinois National Guard to assist the Trump administration's Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. He added that he wouldn't permit any other state's National Guard to enter his state's borders.

“I do not believe that we should be pitting one state's National Guard against another state,” the two-term Democratic governor said. “I think that's un-American.”

Aside from non-compliant state governors, Trump may also run into additional obstacles when carrying out his proposed mass deportations. The Washington Post reported that roughly half of the estimated 1.4 million undocumented immigrants scheduled for deportation are currently unable to be removed from the country for various reasons. For some, their home countries are refusing to take them back. Some are currently incarcerated. Others have gotten reprieves from judges due to medical conditions and other factors. And some of the planes the Trump administration may be hoping to use for deportation flights may be already committed for use by the military.

Pritzker's comments came in the wake of Homan speaking at a Republican event in Chicago's Northwest suburbs, where he criticized both Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. Like Pritzker, Mayor Johnson has said that he wouldn't assist with any Trump administration efforts to round up immigrants in Chicago. According to WBEZ, Homan called both officials "terrible," but also urged them to "come to the table."

"If he doesn't want to help, get the hell out of the way," Homan said. "Chicago’s in trouble because your mayor sucks and your governor sucks."

Click here to read Politico's full article.

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