White House border czar Tom Homan said ICE has no plan to conduct immigration-enforcement sweeps at polling places during the November midterm elections, rejecting claims that federal agents will be stationed at voting locations to search for illegal immigrants.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.
White House border czar Tom Homan on Sunday flatly denied that Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to conduct enforcement sweeps at polling places during the upcoming midterm elections, calling the allegation a “fear tactic” as Denver and several civil-rights organizations pursue a federal lawsuit seeking to restrict armed immigration agents at voting sites.
“There is no plan to sweep polling places looking for illegal aliens,” Homan said during an appearance on Fox News’ “The Sunday Briefing,” while rejecting claims about planned ICE operations.
“I have not seen any operational plans or any discussions on any immigration-enforcement operations at polling places,” Homan told Fox News correspondent Jacqui Heinrich. “This is another fear tactic.”
“This is another attack on ICE and this administration. They don’t want ICE near the polling places, they don’t want to vote for voter ID, they don’t want observers. What do they got to hide to begin with? There is no plan for immigration-enforcement action at polling places. It’s just another attempt to smear ICE and smear the president.”
The comments followed a federal lawsuit filed by Denver and a coalition of civil-rights and voting organizations seeking to prevent armed federal immigration officers from conducting enforcement actions at polling locations during the November elections. The plaintiffs include the City and County of Denver, the League of United Latin American Citizens, UnidosUS and Common Cause.
The lawsuit invokes an 1865 federal statute that generally prohibits federal officials from bringing “troops or armed men” to locations where elections are being held, except when necessary to repel armed enemies of the United States. The plaintiffs argue that armed immigration agents at polling sites could intimidate voters and interfere with local election administration.
“The specter of armed officers at polling places threatens the freedom of this upcoming election,” the coalition said in announcing the legal challenge. “It places voters in fear that they will be confronted by armed federal immigration enforcement officers if they choose to cast a ballot.”
The Trump administration has disputed the premise that ICE intends to patrol polling places. DHS has said it is not planning operations that specifically target voting locations, although officials have left open the possibility that agents could respond to an immediate public-safety threat or execute an enforcement action involving a person they were already pursuing.
Homan drew a similar distinction Sunday between targeting a location itself and arresting an individual who happens to visit one.
“There is no sensitive-location policy,” Homan said.
The Trump administration eliminated restrictions that had previously limited immigration enforcement in or near locations including schools, churches and hospitals. Homan, however, argued that the removal of those restrictions has not resulted in ICE routinely conducting operations inside such facilities.
“I’ve made this challenge for two years. Give me one example, ONE, where ICE has arrested anybody at an elementary school, ICE has arrested anybody at a hospital, ICE has arrested anybody in a church. It hasn’t happened. The only people that violated the sanctity of church was Don Lemon and that whole group.”
“We’ll go where we gotta go to apprehend these people, but ICE are professionals. They try to do things in a professional manner. Now we’re arresting people that may have went to church or may have went to the hospital, but we don’t do operations at locations.”
Homan said the same principle would apply to polling places.
“If you’re a criminal alien, you’re a national security threat, there is no sanctuary,” he said. “But look at the past two years: not one instance of ICE operating at a sensitive location, to include polling locations.”
The lawsuit nonetheless argues that administration statements about potential immigration enforcement at voting sites have created enough uncertainty to warrant court intervention before Election Day.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin previously said ICE would not patrol polling locations but indicated agents could appear at one if responding to a threat or serving a warrant on someone already being tracked. DHS has similarly said it is “not planning operations targeting polling locations.”
The plaintiffs contend that even the possibility of armed federal immigration agents appearing at voting locations could discourage some eligible voters, particularly Latino and naturalized citizens, from casting ballots.
Homan rejected that argument Sunday and said there is no operational plan directing ICE agents to polling places in search of immigration violators.
His message was unequivocal: ICE intends to continue immigration enforcement, including against people the administration considers public-safety or national-security threats, but the agency is not planning Election Day sweeps at voting sites.
“There is no plan for immigration-enforcement action at polling places,” Homan said.
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