Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., campaigns for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., on the campus of Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Friday, Nov. 8, 2019. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
Former Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director and current Fox News contributor Tom Homan and AOC have clashed numerous times in the past.
Standing in for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) at an Ames, Iowa rally on Saturday, AOC told his supporters that they must organize to “tip-off” illegal immigrants if ICE or CBP agents are in the area. She also called for both agencies to be abolished. “Organizing is about tipping people off if you start to see that ICE and CBP are in communities to try and keep people safe…I’m not here to reform some of these systems when we talk about immigration. I’m here because Sen. Sanders has actually committed to breaking up ICE and CBP. That’s why I’m here.”
Homan appeared on “Fox & Friends” on Sunday morning to respond to the Squad leader’s newest smears.
He was furious, as he should be. Homan called AOC’s remarks “dangerous” and “idiotic” and said, “she’s disgusting.”
“I’m disgusted. She says you want to tip off the community to keep the community safe, that’s what ICE is doing.”
Homan explained that last year, ICE arrested 127,000 criminals. Most of them had criminal histories; 2,000 were homicides, 12,000 were rapes and 45,000 were assaults.
Contrary to AOC’s reckless remarks, Homan said, “ICE is keeping the community safe. She [Ocasio-Cortez] stands up on stage — first of all, it’s an incredibly stupid statement she made, which doesn’t surprise me, because she’s about as far from smart as anybody could possibly be, but what she said is dangerous. These men and women put their lives on the line every day to arrest criminals off the streets, especially in New York. My last year as ICE director, we took 5,000 criminals off the streets of New York. These ICE agents [have done] more to protect the residents of New York than she ever has done or ever will do.”
Homan is stunned that “she can stand up on stage and make a statement like that and not have any repercussions from the House Ethics Committee. I mean, they’re trying to remove the President of the United States, a sitting president, at the same time she’s saying ICE shouldn’t remove criminal aliens. They are saying the president is obstructing them. There’s nobody been obstructing more than Congress. They’ve been obstructing this president from Day One.”
It is ludicrous that a member of Congress is advising Americans on how to undermine U.S. law enforcement with impunity.
His anger rose as he spoke. He continued, “Standing on stage and telling people to give a heads up that the good guys are going to be arresting the bad guys, ICE is in your neighborhood, go run and hide. That’s obstruction. That’s a crime and she’s standing on stage doing that. She’s disgusting. Something needs to be done about it.”
Homan is now beside himself, understandably. “President Trump, who in my opinion is the greatest president I ever worked for, he believes law enforcement should enforce the law. He believes you don’t reward law breakers, you reward them with a set of handcuffs. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. So they’re vilifying the men and women of ICE for simply doing their jobs, to run toward danger when everybody else is running away from danger.”
He adds, “AOC wouldn’t have the backbone to do the job they do. She doesn’t like what they do? Then change the law, but stop vilifying the men and women of ICE…I buried ICE agents, I buried border patrol agents. Maybe she ought to see what it’s like to try to console a wife or a child of a fallen officer?”
Griff Jenkins, one of the shows co-hosts, brought up the case of a DACA recipient, Edgar Guttierez, who was arrested for drunk driving in Laguna Beach, California, which is a sanctuary city. He is held for 15 hours, then transferred to ICE. Because he was held by ICE, he filed a lawsuit and was awarded $19,000. Jenkins asked Homan to comment on this case.
“This is why 2020’s important,” replies Homan. “We’re in a fight for our country Griff. And we need to make sure President Trump stays in office and keeps enforcing the law.”
This video can be viewed here.
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