WASHINGTON (AP) — Homeland Safety Secretary Kristi Noem defiantly defended the Trump administration’s hard-line immigration insurance policies on Thursday throughout a Home committee listening to, portraying migrants as a serious menace confronted by the nation that justifies a crackdown that has seen widespread arrests, deportations and a dizzying tempo of restrictions on foreigners.
Noem, who heads the company central to President Donald Trump’s strategy to immigration, acquired backup from Republicans on the panel however fierce questioning from Democrats who known as for her resignation. The secretary, whose testimony was interrupted by protesters calling for an finish to deportations, vowed she “would not back down.”
Noem, who was testifying in entrance of the Home Committee on Homeland Safety to debate “Worldwide Threats to the Homeland,” emphasised in her remarks how large a job she believed immigration performed in these threats to the nation. Her remarks, and the Democrats’ questioning, centered closely on the Trump administration’s immigration insurance policies, whereas in years previous the listening to has centered on points similar to cybersecurity, terrorism, China and border safety.
“What keeps me up at night is that we don’t necessarily know all of the people that are in this country, who they are and what their intentions are,” Noem stated. She stated that was why Trump’s administration was being “so aggressive” in “finding those people who shouldn’t be in this country to begin with.”
Trump returned to energy in January with what he says is a mandate to reshape immigration within the U.S., claiming the nation is beneath an invasion.
Anna Moneymaker by way of Getty Photographs
Within the months since, the variety of folks in immigration detention has skyrocketed; the administration has continued to take away migrants to nations they aren’t from; and, within the wake of an Afghan nationwide being accused of taking pictures two Nationwide Guard troops, Noem’s division has dramatically stepped up checks and screening of immigrants within the U.S.
Powerful questions from Democrats
Rep. Bennie Thompson, the rating Democrat on the Homeland Safety Committee, informed Noem that she has diverted huge assets to hold out Trump’s “extreme” immigration agenda and failed to supply primary responses to oversight questions from Congress.
“I call on you to resign,” the Mississippi congressman stated. “Do a real service to the country.”
Noem didn’t deal with Thompson’s name throughout her opening assertion however steered that she and the division she leads weren’t going wherever.
“We will never yield. We will never waver, and we will never back down,” she stated. She praised the Trump administration’s efforts on the subject of immigration, saying, “We’re ending illegal immigration, returning sanity to our immigration system.”
It has been months since Noem final appeared in Congress in Could. Since then, immigration enforcement operations, particularly in Los Angeles and Chicago, have turn into more and more contentious, with federal brokers and activists incessantly clashing over her division’s ways.
Her testimony was interrupted by protesters shouting “Stop ICE raids” and “End deportations.”
Noem and her division are beneath scrutiny
The worldwide threats listening to, often held yearly, is a chance for members of Congress to ask the leaders of the Division of Homeland Safety, the FBI and the Nationwide Counterterrorism Middle about threats going through the U.S. and what their businesses are doing to handle them.
The listening to supplied lawmakers a uncommon alternative to listen to straight from Noem, however many members of the panel used the majority of their allotted time to both reward or lambast her dealing with of immigration enforcement moderately than ask questions designed to elicit expansive and illuminating responses.
The secretary levied broad criticism for this system by which the person suspected of taking pictures two Nationwide Guard members final month got here to the USA.
This system, Operation Allies Welcome, was created by then-President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration after the 2021 choice to go away Afghanistan following 20 years of American intervention and billions of {dollars} in help.
Noem’s division is beneath specific scrutiny as a result of Congress in July handed laws giving it roughly $165 billion to hold out its mass deportations agenda and safe the border. The division is getting more cash to rent 10,000 extra deportation officers, full the wall between the U.S. and Mexico and enhance detention and elimination of foreigners from the nation.
The secretary’s look additionally comes as a federal choose is investigating whether or not she ought to face a contempt cost over flights carrying migrants to El Salvador.
Noem may even seemingly must reply to criticism from Democrats who accuse immigration enforcement brokers of erroneously detaining and arresting Americans of their rush to deport as many individuals within the nation illegally as attainable. And numerous the Democratic members of the committee are a part of a lawsuit accusing Noem and the division of limiting their entry to Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention amenities.
Anna Moneymaker by way of Getty Photographs
FBI official lists a number of threats going through the nation
Additionally attending Thursday’s listening to are Joseph Kent, the director of the Nationwide Counterterrorism Middle, and Michael Glasheen, operations director of the nationwide safety department of the FBI.
Glasheen, operations director of the FBI’s nationwide safety department, stated the nation faces “serious and evolving” threats, from terrorism plots and overseas intelligence operatives to stylish cyberattacks and internet-enabled exploitation of kids. Notably, he didn’t determine immigration as among the many most urgent considerations for the homeland.
When the listening to was introduced in September, the Republican committee chair stated that apart from Noem and Kent, FBI Director Kash Patel would even be attending. However as an alternative the FBI is being represented by Glasheen.
Thompson stated throughout his opening assertion that he felt the FBI director must also be showing on the listening to alongside Noem, saying he “can’t help but notice” Patel’s absence.
Patel gave the impression to be overseas on official FBI enterprise. Late Wednesday on X, Patel posted that he was in Brussels for a “great” assembly with Matt Whitaker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO.
