Former acting ICE Director Tom Homan said he is “honored” to be selected as the “border czar” for the incoming second Trump administration and is ready to take whatever steps are necessary to address the crisis and restore control. “I’ve been on this network for years complaining about what this administration did to this border. I’ve been yelling and screaming about it and what they need to do to fix it. So when the president asked me, ‘Would you come back and fix it?’ Of course,” he told “Fox & Friends.”
“I’d be a hypocrite if I didn’t. I’m honored the president asked me to come back and help solve this national security crisis, so I’m looking forward to it,” he added in his first interview since being tapped for the role. “I think the calling is clear,” he continued, “I’ve got to go back and help because every morning… I’m pissed off with what this [Biden] administration did to the most secure border in my lifetime, so I’m going to go back and do what I can to fix it.”
Illegal border crossings have surged under the Biden administration, with nearly 3 million recorded in fiscal year 2024, according to the Homeland Security website. Since FY 2021, there have been over 10.8 million illegal encounters. Trump has made illegal immigration a cornerstone of his campaign messaging since 2016. This election cycle, as illegal migrants overwhelmed communities across the U.S., including major cities like New York City, he presented an alternative to the Biden-Harris administration’s approach. His vision focuses on mass deportation, border wall construction, and reinstating executive orders from his previous term that were rescinded by Biden.
Homan stated that this tough border policy would prioritize deporting illegal immigrants who pose threats to public safety or national security, specifically highlighting drug cartels and sex trafficking. “I know exactly what I’m doing, and this is the second time I’ve come out of retirement for this president because it matters. I was a Border Patrol agent, I wore that uniform, and I’m proud that I wore that uniform. I was an ICE agent. I was the first ICE director that came up through the ranks, so the 20,000 men and women that worked for me, I didn’t ask them to do anything I wouldn’t do myself because I was one of them,” he said.
Since Friday, Homan has received numerous calls, texts, and emails amid rumors of his return. Many were from ICE agents who expressed excitement about his comeback. “But more importantly, thousands of retired agents, retired military [have called] that want to come in and volunteer to help this president secure the border and do this deportation operation,” Homan added.
