When the news dropped that Gregory Bovino had been demoted and that some of his Border Patrol officers would be leaving Minneapolis, there was a huge sigh of relief. But before the celebration could start, Trump announced on “Truth Social” that Border Czar, Tom Homan, would be sent to Minneapolis. “Tom is tough but fair and will report to me,” Trump wrote. In a separate post, as reported by The HILL, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote that Homan would be managing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations on the ground “to continue arresting the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens.”
Chicago knows Tom Homan. Tom Homan is not Gregory Bovino, but he is cut from the same cloth. We should know. Chicago experienced Tom Homan exactly a year ago.
On December 9, 2024, Homan, Trump’s “Border Czar,” was in town announcing that mass deportation efforts would “start right here in Chicago, ” and that we should expect to “see an influx of federal immigrant agents after Trump is sworn in.” On January 19, 2025, the day before the inauguration, Block Club Chicago reported that the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times had received information from anonymous sources that “the incoming Trump administration [was] planning large-scale deportations in Chicago” starting Tuesday, January 21, 2025. “Operation Safeguard” was expected to last a week with an influx of 150 – 200 agents on the ground. To prepare, the citizens of Chicago armed themselves with “Know-Your-Rights” trainings and reviewed self-protection strategies like, “don’t open your door,” “ask if the agent has a warrant signed by a judge”, say, “I don’t have to speak to you.” And then Chicago waited for what was likely to come.
“Operation Safeguard” arrived on Sunday, January 26, 2025. ICE posted the following statement on X: “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, along with federal partners, including the FBI, ATF, DEA, CBP and the U.S. Marshals Service, began conducting enhanced targeted operations today in Chicago to enforce U.S. immigration law and preserve public safety and national security by keeping potentially dangerous criminal aliens out of our communities.”
Tom Homan arrived in Chicago on that Sunday morning to oversee “Operation Safeguard.” He was joined by media personality Dr. Phil McGraw and his film crew who, in a promotional video, explained the targeted mission to find and arrest 270 known criminals, drug dealers, rapists, murderers and “bad actors.” McGraw promised that Homan’s ICE agents would not be “sweeping communities.” McGraw went on to post videos of the raids on the MeritTV app.
On that Sunday, there was a knock on ______’s door. His wife, a US citizen, was suspicious, but there were no indications that ICE agents were present. The person on the porch was wearing plain clothes. There were no ICE vans on the street. There was another knock. Before his wife could stop him, ______ opened the door and he was pulled onto the porch. Agents did not produce a warrant even though his wife requested it. He was taken away while his traumatized wife and children watched. His crime? He was convicted of a DUI many years before. Now, a year after being taken from his home, ______ is still incarcerated in a Kentucky detention center and deportation could occur at any time–despite the lack of a judicial warrant, despite having a clean record for years, despite the hardship his family has endured. Tom Homan stole a husband and father from his family. They may never see him again. *
At a recent Town Hall, our Congresswoman said that while removing Greg Bovino from his position was good news for Minneapolis and for Chicago (Bovino had vowed to return to Chicago this spring), it is not what we need to keep our communities safe. As an outspoken critic of Kristi Noem, our Congresswoman has called for her immediate resignation or impeachment. But she admits that even the removal of Kristi Noem will not keep our communities safe. Our Congresswoman voted against the appropriations bill that would add more funding for ICE. But even defunding ICE would not make our communities safer. We will only be safe when ICE is abolished and Congress passes a comprehensive immigration legislation.
It doesn’t matter who is sitting in the broken chairs. It doesn’t matter how the broken chairs are rearranged. The chairs are the problem. They are broken, and it’s time to throw them out. Period.
* The story of ________ is true. His wife is an acquaintance of ours and shared her experience with us the day after he was detained by ICE. The past 12 months have been an unending nightmare.
Tongue on Fire 