Border Czar Tom Homan Says on Fox News ICE Arrests U.S. Citizens Every Day
White House Border Czar Tom Homan said during a Fox News interview that Immigration and Customs Enforcement “arrests U.S. citizens every day,” a statement that has prompted questions about how often such arrests actually occur. Homan made the remark while responding to criticism of ICE enforcement practices.
The comment matters because ICE authority over U.S. citizens is narrowly defined, and claims about frequency have long been disputed by immigration officials and watchdog groups. Homan previously served as acting ICE director and now oversees border policy from the White House.
Under Department of Homeland Security policy, ICE may arrest U.S. citizens only when they violate federal laws enforced by the agency. ICE does not have authority to arrest citizens based on immigration status alone.
Yahoo News and other outlets have reported that U.S. citizens can be arrested by ICE in limited circumstances, typically tied to criminal investigations or mistaken identity. DHS has acknowledged that such cases occur but has rejected claims that citizen arrests are routine.
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“There is no policy or practice of targeting U.S. citizens for immigration enforcement,” a DHS spokesperson has previously said.
What remains unresolved is scale. ICE does not publish daily or annual statistics detailing how many U.S. citizens are arrested, making it impossible to independently verify Homan’s claim about daily frequency.
The Fox News interview has renewed calls for clearer enforcement data as immigration policy remains a central national issue.
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