Gregory Bovino launches attack at Trump’s border czar for ‘political theater’ and not deporting enough migrants
Ex-border chief lashes out at his successor over ‘softer’ approach to immigration enforcement
- Former Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino has taken aim at border czar Tom Homan for not conducting sweeping operations to detain and deport undocumented immigrants, labeling Homan's targeted approach as "political theater."
- Bovino, who was demoted then retired, previously oversaw aggressive immigration enforcement, including indiscriminate roundups and controversial tactics that led to fatal shootings of U.S. citizens and multiple ongoing investigations in Minnesota. Tom Homan took over Bovino’s responsibilities at President Donald Trump’s request and adopted a "softer touch" by prioritizing the deportation of immigrants with criminal records, a strategy that drew criticism from some Trump supporters but was deemed necessary after incidents under Bovino's command.
- “He sounds super tough, chest out, voice all gravel,” Bovino wrote on X in response to a clip of Homan talking about his enforcement strategy. “But zoom in. All he’s actually promising is rounding up the ones who already have known criminal records,” Bovino added, claiming anything less than mass deportations “is just political theater.”
- He continued, “The millions who haven’t gotten caught yet? Crickets. They’re staying right where they are… until they rob or kill you. This is why a 100 million of them are laughing at us.”
- Bovino's claims that undocumented immigrants are more likely to commit crimes perpetuate a false assumption, as studies from the National Institute of Justice and other research indicate that undocumented immigrants have lower arrest rates for violent and drug-related crimes compared to native-born U.S. citizens.
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