Tom Homan
White House border czar Tom Homan shot down claims that Immigration and Customs Enforcement tries to “terrorize” children.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “is not in the business of terrorizing children,” Homan told CNN’s Dana Bash during a Sunday interview on “State of the Union.” The denial followed Democratic Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy’s claim in a Wednesday post to X that “ICE was arresting parents at school bus stops” in Danbury, Connecticut.
Murphy’s office did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
WATCH:
“Senator Chris Murphy said ICE officers targeted parents at school bus stops this week. He said — quote — ‘In Danbury, they are just targeting parents sitting at school bus stops just to terrorize little kids,’” Bash said before asking Homan, “Are ICE officers detaining parents at school bus stops?”
“ICE isn’t in the business of terrorizing children. That’s just political fire,” Homan responded. “ICE is out there enforcing [a] law that was enacted by Congress, then we arrest illegal aliens. Are some parents? I’m sure many are. But we’re not out there to terrorize children. We’re out there to look for illegal aliens with final orders of removal, those who overstayed, those that are criminals, and we’re out there looking for them and arresting them. ICE has no intention of terrorizing children.”
This morning in Danbury, ICE was arresting parents at school bus stops.
But it’s more sinister. ICE waited until the kids were on the bus so when they are dropped off at the end of the day, they are alone, scared to death they can’t find their parents.
I’m heading to Danbury.
— Chris Murphy (@ChrisMurphyCT) August 26, 2026
Homan that Murphy’s claim was “just a political statement made to enrage the American people” and that those kinds of statements are a “reason assaults against ICE officers are up over 9,000% — the threats — and no other law enforcement agency in the world has that percentage of increase in threats.”
“And I say most of it is based on hateful rhetoric and mischaracterization of what ICE does,” Homan continued, before citing the Delaney Hall story as an example.
“Delaney Hall was a big story. Everybody’s protesting up in Newark [in New Jersey] on Delaney Hall, said there was a hunger strike,” Homan said. “People weren’t eating at the cafeteria, but they’re eating in the commissary. And no one was missing medication. They said one person — one father — was arrested while buying diapers. No, he was arrested at a jail, and he was there for domestic violence charges.”
Homan added that “all these false stories come out, and people buy off on them” but when the administration proves them fake “no one ever covers that.”
“No one ever says, ‘OK, we were wrong. There actually wasn’t a hunger strike. There wasn’t actually mistreatment at that facility,’” Homan concluded.
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