Trump ‘Border Czar’ Pick Outlines First Priorities on Handling Illegal Immigration

President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for “border czar” on Monday provided more details about the forthcoming administration’s plans on dealing with illegal immigration and the border.
Trump on Sunday evening named Tom Homan, the former director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under the first Trump administration, to lead his agency’s border effort.
Homan added, “I don’t care if you’re Republican or Democrat or independent, for border security is national security. We should all be on the same side on that.”
A former Border Patrol agent, Homan said he would prioritize “public safety threats and national security threats” and increase workplace inspections for illegal immigrants.
“Worksite operations have to happen,” he said. “Where do we find most victims of sex trafficking and forced labor trafficking? At work sites.”
“So it’s going to be the worst first, that’s how it has to be done. And we know a record number of people on the terrorist watch list have crossed this border, we know a record number of terrorists have been released in this country, we’ve already arrested some planning attacks,” he said Sunday.
Aside from focusing on threats, Homan said in Monday’s interview he would also focus on illegal immigrants ordered to leave after failed asylum claims, noting, “At the end of that due process, if the judge says you must go home, then we have to take them home.”
“Because if we’re not, what the hell are we doing?” Homan asked. “If the judge’s order doesn’t mean anything, then shut down immigration court.”
While Homan said he would like to have cooperation from local law enforcement, he warned that if Democrat-led “sanctuary” jurisdictions such as New York City resist, he would consider sending in more ICE officers.
“We’re going to do the job without you or with you,” Homan said.
The title “border czar” isn’t an official title in the Department of Homeland Security, the federal agency that oversees border and immigration enforcement. Trump’s announcement, however, is one of the president-elect’s first, suggesting that he will place a high priority on the border.
Such a role does not require Senate confirmation. President Joe Biden named Vice President Kamala Harris, who ran against Trump in 2024, to be his “border czar,” a move that was often criticized by Trump and Republicans on the campaign trail.
Homan was among several top Trump immigration officials who in 2018 recommended that the administration implement a stringent border policy that resulted in thousands of illegal immigrant families being separated at the border. In recent interviews, Homan has suggested that a better approach would be to deport illegal immigrant families together.
In a “60 Minutes” interview in late October, Homan spoke on Trump’s proposal to initiate mass deportations of illegal immigrants.
When asked by journalist Cecelia Vega about whether there is a way to deport large numbers of people without family separations, Homan said, “Of course there is. Families can be deported together.”
Trump has not yet said whom he would nominate to head the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and ICE, as he continues to meet with potential candidates for his administration.
Vice President-elect JD Vance on Monday confirmed reports that Trump immigration adviser Stephen Miller would serve as White House deputy chief of staff for policy. Miller was a White House senior adviser during Trump’s first presidency and the architect of Trump’s immigration agenda.
In naming Homan, Trump wrote on Truth Social late on Sunday that he would be “in charge of our nation’s borders (”The Border Czar“), including, but not limited to, the Southern Border, the Northern Border, all Maritime, and Aviation Security,” which would handle deportations.