Border czar Tom Homan said late Monday that talk about California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) potential arrest amid immigration protests in Los Angeles and President Trump deployment of National Guard troops and Marines in the city has been “blown out of proportion.”
“There is no threat to arrest Gov. Newsom, but the statement was made just like anybody else. If he crosses that line of impeding ICE enforcement efforts, if he knowingly harbors and conceals an alien, that’s a crime,” Homan said during a Monday appearance on NewsNation’s “Cuomo.”
“We would ask … the attorney general to seek prosecution,” he added. “My words were taken out of context, but it is what it is.”
Newsom has openly criticized Trump’s decision to deploy troops in response to protests over raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and has vowed to sue the administration, alleging it overstepped its authority.
Trump endorsed the idea of Homan arresting Newsom earlier Monday, telling reporters, “I would do it if I were Tom.”
“The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor. This is a day I hoped I would never see in America,” Newsom wrote in response to Trump’s remarks on Monday.
“I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican this is a line we cannot cross as a nation — this is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism,” he added.
Trump and Newsom have been feuding since the president’s return to office, clashing over federal aid after local wildfires and the administration’s efforts to crack down on so-called “sanctuary cities” across the country.
Homan also told NewsNation host Chris Cuomo that the narrative that the ICE immigration enforcement actions were meant to break up families was “false.”
“After two days of the violence occurring in LA, President Trump, I think, made the right move. He called in the National Guard to protect government property, government officers and public safety. And that’s what he did, and I applaud him for it,” he added.
The tensions in Los Angeles follow charges being filed against Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) after she visited an ICE facility in New Jersey to conduct oversight.
Federal authorities accused her of assaulting ICE officers in addition to impeding and interfering with law enforcement officers, which the lawmaker denies.
Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Alina Habba also charged Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D) with misdemeanor trespassing in connection with an incident at a detention facility but later dropped the case.
