President-elect Donald Trump’s border czar Tom Homan came to Chicago on Monday to implore Mayor Brandon Johnson and Gov. JB Pritzker to “come to the table” and negotiate with him over a mass deportation plan that he declared would start right here.
Homan, the former acting head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement during Trump’s first term, began a 20-minute address at a Northwest Side GOP “holiday party” with some light ribbing before detailing his plan, which includes verifying the status of asylum seekers and arresting those who are found harboring criminals.
“Chicago’s in trouble because your mayor sucks and your governor sucks,” Homan said to cheers. Later, he called both “terrible,” while also telling them to “come to the table.”
To Johnson, who has said he would protect the city’s immigrants from federal agents, Homan said, “If he doesn’t want to help, get the hell out of the way.”
Homan threatened to arrest people who are found with the criminals he is targeting — regardless of whether he has cooperation from the city. He urged the mayor to meet with him — following the lead of New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
“When they go find that bad guy, and when they find him, he’s probably going to be with others. Others that are not a priority because they’re not a criminal. But guess what? They’re going to be arrested, too,” Homan said. “Because he forced me into that position. So he wants to play the game. I’ll play that game.”
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Homan reiterated that there is no plan to separate families, but said “it may happen.”
“I’m not looking to separate families at all. That’s not my goal,” Homan said. “My goal is to enforce the law, but if you put yourself in that position, it may happen. But there’s no plan in this administration right now to separate families. It just isn’t. However, we’re going to enforce the law. So if you put yourself in that position it’s on you.”
In an interview on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Trump said he wants to end birthright citizenship, which would take away citizenship from those born in the U.S. to undocumented parents — despite the U.S. Constitution enshrining those rights in the 14th Amendment. Trump also said he would be open to working with Democrats to ensure that Dreamers — undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children — would be able to stay in the country.
Homan said the parents of Dreamers will have two options: “You can either take a child home with you, or they just stay here. But you don’t get a pass.”
Homan also accused asylum seekers of coming to the U.S. “for a job,” saying “they’re not escaping fear and prosecution from their own government.”
“Nearly nine out of 10 people who claim asylum at the border never get relief from those courts,” Homan said. “They simply don’t qualify for asylum.”
He said those who don’t quality for asylum through the courts will get an order of removal.
“If we don’t, what the hell are we doing? Shut down immigration court?” Homan said. “There’s no more consequences. We have to remove them if the law requires.”
Of his controversial plan, Homan criticized media coverage and denied that it is “racist.”
“We know exactly who we’re going to arrest. We know most likely where we’re going to find them. We know a lot about them because of investigative case files,” Homan said. “So it’s not a sweep. It’s not an uncontrolled operation. It’s a very targeted operation.”
Asked about Chicago’s refugees after his address, Homan said they’ll be removed only if a court deems it.
“If they’re going through immigration proceedings for asylum, the hearings have to happen. They get due process,” Homan said. “When they’re ordered removed, that’s when it’s my problem.”
Homan was keynote speaker at the event, hosted by the Law & Order PAC & Northwest Side GOP and attended by Ald. Nicholas Sposato (38th). Sposato’s ward saw a big Trump bump in the November election compared to 2020. Support for Trump in Chicago has nearly doubled since his first presidential bid.
Trump has vowed to stop federal funding to sanctuary cities such as Chicago. Days after the presidential election, Johnson said the city will continue to protect immigrants — and won’t allow Chicago police officers to help federal agents deport Chicago residents.
Pritzker is in discussions with Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office to explore what further legal resources or staff they’ll need to challenge Trump policies, including the potential for Trump to try to withhold federal grants for police in blue states in order to enact his mass deportation plan.
Pritzker has called any such action “illegal” and said the state would take legal action.
Just days after the election, the governor sounded a defiant tone.
“To anyone who intends to come take away the freedom and opportunity and dignity of Illinoisans, I would remind you that a happy warrior is still a warrior,” Pritzker said. “You come for my people. You come through me.”
On Monday, his administration took a less combative stance.
“It’s no secret that Illinois will face countless, baseless attacks over the next four years from the Trump Administration,” Pritzker spokesman Alex Gough said Monday. “Rather than responding to every ridiculous boast from Trump lackeys, Governor Pritzker is focused on what he was focused on during the first Trump term: leading our state with competence instead of chaos.”