Trump Names Tom Homan Border Czar on Fox & Friends, Before Telling Homan

The impulsive president wants the former acting director of
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Tom Homan, to serve in the newly created
“border czar” position so badly that he announced Homan’s appointment before telling
Homan. Or, apparently, White House staff.

Homan, who thoroughly enjoyed his former job ripping migrant
families apart and deporting them, currently works as a Fox News contributor
and cheerleader for Trump’s abusive immigration policies after leaving his post
at ICE last year. Trump announced
that Homan would become the new border czar on Fox & Friends (where else!) on Friday.

“Tom Homan’s coming back,” Trump said. “He’s going to be
very much involved with the border.” Trump added, “He’ll be probably working
out of the White House but spending a lot of time at the border.”

According to CNN, Homan was
surprised by the president’s statements, and White House officials said
details of the position of border czar are still being worked out.

“Talks about the nature of the border czar position are
still ongoing, according to one of the officials. Prior to the President’s
announcement, aides had not finalized the nature and scope of the role and they
had not formally vetted candidates, though Homan’s name has been floated
internally,” CNN reported.

According to Politico, Trump offered Homan the job several
weeks ago, but Homan turned
it down. Homan did not immediately comment about Trump’s announcement,
which the president admitted was supposed to happen next week.

Homan, as Splinter previously reported,
is a piece of work. He’s worked in immigration enforcement for over three
decades, and as an immigration hardliner, he helped boost
deportations under the Obama administration. Trump named him acting
director of ICE in late 2017. But for reasons
that are unclear, his nomination failed to advance in the Senate, and he
retired in 2018.

Since then, he’s publicly supported the Trump
administration’s policy of separating families at the border, blaming
parents for having their kids stripped from them by U.S. authorities. Homan
called the administration’s “zero tolerance” policy “unfortunate”
and “sad,” but he also called into question whether the countries migrants
are fleeing from are truly dangerous. “If they really are escaping fear and
persecution, looking for relief in this country, why not come to a port of
entry” and apply for asylum, he said in June of last year.

He also once
said, “If you’re in this country illegally, and you committed a crime by
entering this country, you should be uncomfortable, you should look over your
shoulder, and you need to be worried.”

It’s unclear what type of
authority the position of border czar would have, given that Congress created
the Department of Homeland Security in 2002 to oversee border security, among
other responsibilities.

As for Homan, it remains to be seen whether he’s
willing to turn Trump down a second time. Let’s hope so, although he’s equally despicable on Fox News.