'We're Not Surrendering': Homan Vows to Continue Minneapolis Operation, But Says It Will be 'Safer'

After mounting public outcry over two fatal shootings in Minneapolis at the hands of federal immigration officials, evidence of indiscriminate stops of U.S. citizens, and widespread allegations of unconstitutional search and seizure violations, President Donald Trump’s top immigration adviser says he has requested plans to withdraw some of the thousands of federal immigration officers in Minnesota. But immigration agents will continue making arrests in Minnesota, Trump’s ‘border czar’ Tom Homan told reporters in Minneapolis on Thursday. “We are not going to surrender our mission at all, we’re just going to do it smarter,” he said. Trump hastily sent Homan, a former acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), to Minnesota on Monday night for emergency meetings with local officials. In a press conference on Thursday, Homan said he had met with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, state Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, all of whom had been outspoken critics of Trump’s decision to deploy heavily armed, masked immigration agents to make arrests on the streets.  “I’m not here because the federal government has carried its mission out perfectly,” Homan said. “President Trump and I have recognized that certain improvements could be made— that is exactly what I have been doing here.” He said he is working on “making this operation safer, more efficient, by the book.” Those comments appeared to be a thinly-veiled critique of the leadership of Border Patrol commander Gregory Bovino, who openly encouraged the harsh tactics and has reportedly been transferred out of the state. As a result of those meetings, Homan said that he has asked for a plan to begin removing the massive deployment of federal immigration agents from Minnesota. He didn’t say when the draw down would begin or how many of the surge of ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers would remain. “I have staff from CBP and from ICE working on a drawdown plan. What does that look like based on the cooperation? What does that look like based on the number of targets we have left to find?” Homan told reporters, suggesting discussions are ongoing behind-the-scenes. Homan linked the withdrawal of federal immigration forces in the state to the ability for ICE to make arrests inside jails and prisons. He said that many of those arrests are already happening and expressed hopes of expanding that cooperation. “I will highlight that the Minnesota state prison system under the department of corrections have been honoring ICE detainers and we appreciate that important collaboration and we are going to expand on that—that decision has made Minnesota safer,” Homan said.  A rapid hiring spree has brought on board thousands of new ICE officers in recent months, drawing concerns that federal officers were being sent to Minnesota without enough vetting or training. To boost its headcount, ICE last year eased age restrictions for new hires and shortened training by several weeks. Democrats in Congress are threatening to hold up government funding if ICE doesn’t agree to a list of demands. They’re calling for ICE to impose a uniform code of conduct, require independent investigations of violations, and mandate that agents wear body cameras, carry identification, and don’t hide their faces behind masks. Homan said that immigration officials need to carry out their duties according to standards of conduct. “I want to be clear, ICE and CBP officers are performing their duties in a challenging environment, under tremendous circumstances, but they are trying to do it with professionalism,” he said. “If they don’t, they will be dealt with—like any other federal agency, we have standards of conduct.” Homan argued that arresting more people inside jails and prisons will enable immigration agents to make more “targeted” arrests of people in the U.S. illegally. He also said that people who have no criminal record, but are in the U.S. without authorization, will still be arrested if they are encountered by ICE.  “If you’re in the country illegally, you’re never off the table,” he warned.