Press Briefing: Tom Homan Speaks to Reporters Outside the White House - September 8, 2026

It looks like you're chasing around migrants and different skin colors, uh, around Rio Grande. Have you seen it? Do you think it's appropriate?

I have not seen it.

-- on the, uh, it said --

[Inaudible], where, where is that at?

It's on the whitehouse.gov website.

Okay, I have not seen it.

-- do you have any insight on the drone activity of the US-Mexico border? There's been a roughly 75% decrease in the number of drones probing the southern border in the Rio Grande Valley. Have you heard about this?

I am not gonna discuss that.

Of course. Sir, how do you --

-- we, we are aware of all drone activity, and we're mitigating it. And let me just leave it at that.

-- Homan, do you believe that ICE should be arresting parents in front of their children at school bus stops?

-- ICE arrested parents at a school bus stop?

In Bridgeport, Connecticut last week.

Well, I'm not aware of that.

[Inaudible]

-- but bottom line is, you know, s- -- are they in the country illegally?

-- he was in the country illegally for 20 years, but did not commit any other crimes while in the interior of the United States.

Is he removable? Is he in, here in violation of the law?

Should he be arrested in front of his 16-year-old daughter at their school bus stop?

-- not aware of that. And the bottom line is that just because you have --

-- confirmed it --

-- no.

-- [Inaudible]

-- no, here's, here's the issue. The message you wanna send the whole world, enter the country illegally, it's a crime, it's okay? If you get an order of removal, ignore it?

What happens --

As long as you don't --

-- is that --

-- no --

-- the children --

-- no, no.

-- at bus stops --

Have a US citizen child, and, and you're, and you're good to go. The law, the law means nothing to you anymore. That's the message we send the whole world. Enter the country illegally, it's a crime, don't worry about it. Have a US citizen child and you're off the table. That's the message you wanna send the whole world?

The most vulnerable people, put yourselves in harm's way. Like under Biden administration where four, 4,000 aliens died making that journey. No, the law, the, the law enforcement's, it- -- it's, it's, it's meaningful. It, and if you're in the country legally, you've got a problem.

-- Holman --

Mr.-

-- have you, uh, with the administration looking to Nassau County, Long Island, uh, I'm getting told by a number of sources that there's a lot of illegal activity, specifically around ghost fronts that are p- -- portraying themselves to be pharmacies, and, uh, taxi cabs. Have you guys looked into that at all?

It's something that's --

We are very aware of the illegal alien crises in New York and on Long Island. We just completed an operation where 2,200 were arrested. And it's not over. I mean, it was the phase one of, of, of sending resources to sanctuary cities where we know we have a problem. So we do see more arrests in New York. We're, we've got a lot of leads in [Inaudible] that we'll be [Inaudible].

-- Homan, will you play the, uh, video game the White House released --

I just answered that, I haven't seen it.

[Inaudible]

I've not seen it. I haven't seen it. I don't, I can't judge it, I haven't seen it.

Is there anywhere that ICE won't arrest parents and children? At their school, at a hospital, in a church?

Have we arrested somebody at a school?

At a school bus stop in Bridgeport, Connecticut --

Have we arrested somebody at a school?

-- asking, is that a, a line for you to draw?

-- we have not arrested anybody at a school. No one's been arrested at a church. No one's been arrested at a hospital.

Would they be?

If you're a significant public safety threat, national security threat, there is no sanctuary. But I point out to the fact, ICE agents are doing the right thing. You can't give me one example where someone's been arrested in those areas. Now is there a problem --

I gave you an example of --

Listen --

-- someone at a school bus stop and you said you hadn't heard of that.

I haven't heard it. Is that --

[Inaudible]

-- a school?

-- were asked about it --

Is that a church?

-- last week. It was at a school bus stop.

-- I was not aware of that either.

-- with a 16-year-old daughter.

-- not aware of every arrus- -- arrest ICE makes.

-- you gonna go check on her?

I, I sent it to ICE to, to run it down and get the information. But here's what --

-- haven't gotten anything back yet?

-- I have not.

Okay. 'Cause ICE released a statement --

Well, let's get back --

-- about it last week.

-- to the, what th- -- th- -- the basic question is, there is no sanctuary for public safety threat and national security threat in this country. Even though we have not arrested anyone in school, we haven't arrested anyone in a church.

Do you think --

Or a hospital --

-- a father --

-- [Inaudible]

-- who's been here for 20 years is a national security threat to the country?

Pardon me?

Do you think that someone who's been in the country for 20 years, has a 16-year-old daughter, is a father in the community in Bridgeport, Connecticut, are they a significant national security threat? Someone that ICE should prioritize arresting at a school bus stop?

-- they a national security threat? If they have no, if we've got no intelligence, they're not a national security threat, they've got no cr- criminal history, are they a national security threat? No. Are they in the country illegally? Yeah. Under the United States law, laws can, you know, enacted by congress, signed by the president, are they removable?

Yes. If we find them, will they be removed? Absolutely.

-- you have no problem arresting them in front of their daughter at a school bus stop? That's --

-- not aware of that incident. Bottom line is -

-- that's true. Well, I am. I've read about it from a statement.

-- you read about it?

In a statement from ICE. Are statements from ICE inaccurate.

-- not aware of it. You keep asking about a situation I'm not aware of.

Okay. I- -- ICE put out a statement about it. I'm not sure why you wouldn't be aware.

-- ICE put out a statement saying they arrested somebody at a school bus time?

Yes. In Bridgeport, Connecticut last year.

-- he here illegally?

Yes, for 20 years.

[Inaudible]

-- Homan, quick question. I, uh, the country obviously overwhelmingly imploded for mass deportation when President Trump came in a year and a half, two years ago now. Coming into the midterms, do you think that's still something that's important to voters?

Yes, that's why President Trump was voted president. If you look at ICE numbers, record amount of arrests or record amount of removes. Bottom line is June ICE broke an all-time record. July, they broke that record. In August, they broke a whole new record. They're arresting people in record numbers. And people gotta remember, even they're breaking records on arrest and deportations, even though there's over 100, uh, national, uh, uh, nationwide injunctions that were filed by radical judges who want to stop us from detaining illegal immigrants. 100, 100 nationwide injunctions we're fighting.

There's over 85,000 habeas cases where we're not allowed [Inaudible] were arrested. So despite the attacks from the left and the radical judges, we're still breaking records. I, I'm, I got faith in DOJ suing sanctuary cities and taking the judges on, but we'll win these cases in the end, but are, are they slow on the arrest?

Yeah. But despite that, we still got record number of arrests.

-- Secretary Mullins said ICE agents in the field will have body cameras by the end of September. Uh, what specifically still has to happen between now and then?

Cameras are being deployed. I don't know if they're 100% deployed now. They would've been 100% deployed by now if the Democrats hadn't been shut down the government for months. Uh, they helped fund it because they, they shut down. But ICE is, you know, they, I know they trained to train them nationwide. Cameras have been deployed.

I think mostly are deployed, if not all [Inaudible]. But there's a plan for it and, and again, it would've been done by now if the government wasn't shut down.

-- Homan is there anything that you can say about the administration's stance to [Inaudible].

Well, we have to see what happens. [Inaudible]. TPS, temporary protection status means temporary. And let's face it, El Salvador is a much safer country than ever been now with the new president out there. Uh, so, you know, it, it, I've been around for over 40 years and TPS is never, even though it's supposed to be temporary protected status, even though the country conditions changed, it just kept getting re- -- renewed, removed, and renewed.

I'm glad they're finally sticking to what the statute says, temporary means temporary.

[Inaudible]

I don't. [Inaudible] they extend it, I'm not aware of it. I'm aware of [Inaudible]

-- Homan, it's reported that some of the, uh, immigration judges in San Francisco got let go because they proved like 90% of the cases they handled. Do you have a comment on that?

-- that again.

Okay. There's some judges, immigration judges in, in San Francisco District Court, they were let go because they approved like 90% or a high percentage of the immigration assignee cases they presided over.

-- Biden administration fired judges that were appointed by Trump. Yeah, that question?