DAY 1 DEPORTATIONS? HOW BORDER CZAR TOM HOMAN PLANS TO USE THE MILITARY


By bblouin
Tom Homan speaking.

Despite illegal immigration reaching a three-year low, President-elect Donald Trump is very concerned about it. So much so, that he has appointed Tom Homan as the Border Czar of America. While the exact details of their plan are still being ironed out, one thing is for sure, they want to use the military for deportation. While there are several legal issues to navigate, Homan has a plan on how to utilize service members and increase deportations in the process.

How Will Tom Homan Use the Military for Deportations?

Donald Trump has selected Tom Homan to help lead a mass deportation of undocumented immigrants, similar to roles he’s already held before during Trump’s first term.

What’s interesting is the consistent theme of using the military for the deportation efforts, though legally, there are questions about how this can be executed.

Nevertheless, Tom Homan is on board with a plan, calling U.S. military assets a "force multiplier" for deportations. He plans to have service members be an integral part of the cause, just focusing on non-law enforcement actions.

This means service members won’t be participating in arrests, but would serve as manpower for other logistical needs.

"They'll be used to do non-enforcement duties such as transportation, whether it's on ground or air, infrastructure, building, intelligence," said Homan.

Currently, members of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) conduct these duties but Homan wants to move military members into places where agents currently operate, as transportation and similar roles don’t “require immigration authority," according to Homan.

One notable example is the use of military aircraft to deport illegal aliens. As Homan stated, “We're hoping DoD will help us with air flights because there's a limited number of planes ICE has contracts with. So, DoD can certainly help with air flights all across the globe."

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The Border Czar Is Taking a Page Out of the Playbooks of the Previous Administration

This isn’t the first time Tom Homan has had authority over our border, nor is it the first time stricter guidelines have come into play.

In many ways, what Trump and Homan are aiming to do echoes the past, including efforts to assist U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in 2018 and 2019.

In 2018, deployments to the border ramped up, with 6,100 active duty troops heading south all before Trump ended up declaring a national emergency.

The purpose of the declaration was to provide a pathway for the military to legally participate in building the wall Trump heavily campaigned as a part of his platform during his first presidential term.

So far, The Pentagon has emphasized that troops are there for support. However, despite deploying thousands to the border, they would refrain from law enforcement in accordance with the Posse Comitatus Act forbidding such actions.

A mix of active-duty troops and National Guardsmen have been assisting CBP across Arizona, California, and Texas.

It’s a mission that has focused on building infrastructure, helping with travel, and providing medical resources with additional military police units deploying to provide security for construction crews.

Well past the initial 45-day mission, The Pentagon approved a new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) request for personnel, in case there was a need for riot control.

These types of roles, and the use of troops in April 2019 for transporting immigrants, are the ideas behind the Border Czar’s focus moving forward.

CPB, ICE, and the DHS continue to find ways to include troops and The Pentagon has approved expansion roles to meet more and more immigration needs, which is an interesting prospect compared to Trump’s plan for a national emergency.

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Tom Homan’s Experience

With plenty of past and present examples of military use involving deportation, Tom Homan has plenty to work with, and the knowledge of how to work the system to his advantage.

Homan joined the Immigration and Naturalization Service in 1984, serving in roles including Border Patrol agent and supervisor.

In 2013, he was appointed by President Obama as ICE's executive associate director of enforcement and removal operations. A year later, Homan would become known for his controversial method of separating families as a deterrent for migrants.

During the first Trump administration, Homan was appointed as acting ICE Director, where arrests increased by 38%.

Legal pushback is inevitable but the framework is already in place for the use of troops in non-law enforcement roles to help deport illegal immigrants.

Tom Homan will play an important role in shaping not only how the military is used for immigration but also how it could have ramifications for other American civil liberties down the road.

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