Tom Homan, associated with President Donald Trump, will travel to Minneapolis this week after an ICU nurse was fatally shot on Saturday in this Midwestern city that has become the center of an immigration crackdown.
Homan’s arrival comes as protests across the city have grown more intense following accounts of Alex Pretti’s fatal shooting that deviate from the Trump administration’s official narrative. Homan’s planned trip also coincides with increasing calls from both Republicans and Democrats for an independent investigation into immigration enforcement tactics, which have faced more scrutiny since agents detained a Minneapolis resident in her car weeks earlier.
Here’s what you need to know about Homan before he arrives in the Twin Cities.
Homan has been involved in immigration enforcement for four decades
He served as a Border Patrol agent before joining Immigration and Customs Enforcement in 2003 when the agency was established as part of Homeland Security. He was a relatively low – profile yet influential figure in immigration enforcement during the Obama administration, leading ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations division, which was responsible for tracking down individuals with outstanding deportation orders and removing them from the country.
Despite his unwavering support for Trump and harsh criticism of President Joe Biden, some view him as a voice of restraint and moderation compared to some in the current administration.
Homan, who is widely linked to immigration enforcement actions, was awarded a Presidential Rank Award by the Obama administration in 2015 to recognize his effectiveness.
In January 2017, while at his retirement party, Trump’s choice for homeland security secretary, John Kelly, asked him to stay at ICE. Homan took a weekend to consider it and then accepted, becoming a prominent figure in the Trump administration over four turbulent years.
Under Obama, the U.S. carried out 432,000 deportations in 2013, the highest annual total since records began. Deportations under the first Trump administration…
Homan and Trump’s ambitious enforcement plans
When he was appointed, Homan was regarded as a leader who not only shared Trump’s ideology but also had significant practical experience in immigration policy.
Homan sees illegal immigration in black – and – white terms and has not apologized for Trump’s policy of targeting all undocumented people in the country, not just those with criminal records, public safety concerns, or recent border crossers.
“If you’re in the country illegally, you should be worried,” he said in a 2018 interview with The Associated Press. “That’s how it should be. Just like if I speed on the highway, are you worried about getting a ticket? If you lie on your taxes, are you worried about an audit?”
“People always ask me why I removed that guy who’s been here for 12 years and has two U.S. citizen kids. I said because he went through the due process,” he told the AP. “People think I enjoy this. I’m a father. They don’t think this bothers me. I feel sorry for these people’s situation. Don’t misunderstand me, but I have a job to do.”
He also said in a separate interview that worksite immigration enforcement operations, which the Biden administration largely halted, would be necessary.
“I will conduct the biggest deportation operation this country has ever seen,” Homan said in 2024.
Homan vowed to target ‘worst of the worst’ in ‘humane manner’
In an appearance on News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” in 2024, Homan promised to target, at least initially, those who pose a risk to public safety and rejected suggestions that… in finding and deporting immigrants.
“You should focus on public safety threats and national security threats first because they’re the worst of the worst,” he said on the show. He also said ICE would implement Trump’s plans in a “humane way.”
In a separate “60 Minutes” interview before the 2024 presidential elections, Homan called the suggestions of mass neighborhood raids or building camps to hold people “ridiculous.”
When asked if there was a way to carry out deportations without separating families, he said, “Families can be deported together.”
There are numerous recent examples across the country of arrests that don’t match those priorities. In Minnesota, The Associated Press has reported on how ICE agents have detained people with… and… U.S. citizens.
Homan survived bribery accusations
The White House… Homan in September after reports that he accepted $50,000 from undercover agents posing as businesspeople during an FBI operation, leading to a bribery investigation that was ultimately closed by Trump’s Justice Department.
Homan was accused of taking the cash during a 2024 encounter with agents posing as businesspeople seeking government contracts, which Homan said he could help them obtain in a second Trump term.
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt described Homan’s encounter with the undercover agents as an attempt by the Biden administration to “trap one of the president’s top allies and supporters, someone they knew well would take a government position.”