Transcript: Tom Homan on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," March 29, 2026

The pursuing is the transcript of the interrogation with Tom Homan, Trump medication borderline czar, that aired connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" connected March 29, 2026.

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MARGARET BRENNAN:  We statesman with White House Border Czar Tom Homan, who was tasked by the president to assistance oversee ICE efforts pursuing the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti earlier this twelvemonth retired successful Minneapolis. Good greeting to you, sir.

TOM HOMAN: Good morning. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: So Congress is gone until mid-April. Will the president compel them to travel backmost and benignant this out?

HOMAN: Well, look, I anticipation so. I mean, they got to- they got to money the Department of Homeland Security. Again, we're talking astir the Department of Homeland Security, and we're successful an accrued menace posture close present due to the fact that what's going connected successful the world, we've got to support this state safe, which means we got to we got to money the members of the Coast Guard and, and CISA and- and Secret Service and each these different agencies wrong the Department of Homeland Security. I cognize the president recovered a mode to wage TSA workers truthful we tin get the American nationalist done those lines and helium besides came up with the thought of sending ICE agents to the airport, which has had an impact. So we conscionable request to get the section funded. They privation to speech about, you know, migration policies. We tin speech astir that. But, wherefore bash you got to clasp the remainder of the DHS hostage to bash that? Let's beryllium down and talk. I've been talking to them for the past 2 weeks. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah, but conscionable to beryllium clear, the president is not forcing lawmakers to travel backmost to Washington now. He's going to hold until mid-April to bash this?

HOMAN: Look-  and the American radical clasp Congress responsible. They're connected abrogation close present portion tens of thousands of DHS employees aren't being paid --

(CROSSTALK) 

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- Right. But Republicans power some chambers –

HOMAN: -- And that's what happened astatine the airports --

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- That's the- this is the president's party. 

(CROSSTALK ENDS) 

HOMAN: The Democrats shut, the Democrats unopen down DHS. They voted to unopen down DHS due to the fact that they simply won't money DHS, due to the fact that they privation to alteration ICE policies, truthful ICE is little effectual successful the interior. Remember wherefore we're here. We're present due to the fact that the past 4 years of an unfastened border, millions of radical are successful this state illegally, galore nationalist information threats, nationalist information threats, and we're retired seeking them and arresting them. And they simply don't similar ICE enforcing the law. 

(CROSSTALK)

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- Well

HOMAN: They proved that the past 4 years. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- The measure that --

HOMAN: -- They didn't - fto ICE enforce the law. 

(CROSSTALK ENDS) 

MARGARET BRENNAN: - The measure that passed the Senate was bipartisan, and it did person a batch of the backing for the agencies you conscionable laid retired there. The contented was circumstantial to parts of ICE, but- but it seems similar the White House truly didn't unit your enactment to get successful enactment here, due to the fact that that Republican controlled Senate did walk a backing bill. The White House didn't get the House of Representatives enactment connected committee with that. In fact, the Speaker, Mike Johnson, said that measure was a joke. Why wasn't the White House capable to get some parties- some heads of the party, the president controls connected the aforesaid page?

HOMAN: Look, I've been up connected the hill. I've been successful these meetings. I've met with lawmakers from some sides. This isn't a White House issue. This is the Democrats shutting down the Department of Homeland Security. 

(CROSSTALK) 

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- So did you enactment the Republican measure successful the Senate that passed?

HOMAN: -- I've been successful these meetings, they, they --  

(CROSSTALK ENDS) 

HOMAN: I enactment Congress opening up the full government, the full DHS, and not holding radical successful DHS hostage due to the fact that they don't like-- 

(CROSSTALK) 

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- So no.

HOMAN: -- migration enforcement. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: -- You weren't onboard with the Senate bill? 

HOMAN: -- I enactment opening up the full government, I'm with the president.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay. Well -- 

HOMAN: -- I missed that. Say that again, ma'am.

(CROSSTALK ENDS) 

MARGARET BRENNAN: So you were not successful favour of the measure that passed the Senate, which the Republican leaders I got it-- 

HOMAN: -- I enactment the president of the United States successful getting DHS afloat funded and operating. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, truthful archer me- truthful the President did nonstop DHS to usage different pots of exigency currency to wage these TSA officers, and they're expected to person paychecks arsenic aboriginal arsenic tomorrow. Does that mean that the strategy is going to go unclogged. Do they really person to amusement up to enactment to get paid?

HOMAN: Yeah, I deliberation it's surely going to help, due to the fact that TSA agents person near the occupation due to the fact that they got it, you know, whether it's driving Ubers oregon uncovering different jobs truthful that- truthful they tin provender their families and wage the rent. So I'm hoping with this- this alteration that President Trump enactment successful spot with- was with Secretary Markwayne Mullen, that much volition travel backmost to work. Until then, ICE volition stay successful airports to instrumentality those jobs that to unafraid the airdrome and check- cheque recognition and cheque exit lanes wherever radical participate to exit. To bash the jobs that don't necessitate the enhanced TSA screening truthful we tin get much TSA screeners connected the X-ray machines, to unfastened up much lanes, truthful crystal is determination to bash the job, to get TSA screeners backmost to the line, and hopefully unfastened much lines, get the American nationalist done the airport.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay. Well, there's like, 500 TSA officers who person quit. Do you expect to beryllium capable to rehire them, and we person immoderate large events similar the World Cup coming up successful June. Are we going to person problems astatine airports for the foreseeable future?

HOMAN: Look, we're going to proceed a bully beingness there, and until the airports consciousness similar they're in- they're successful 100% you know, successful a posture wherever they tin bash nary mean operations. If little TSA agents travel back, that means we'll support much ICE agents there. The President has been clear. He wants to unafraid those airports, especially, arsenic I said earlier, successful an accrued menace posture, we request to unafraid those airports. ICE is determination to assistance our brothers and sisters successful TSA. We'll beryllium determination arsenic agelong arsenic they request us, until they get backmost to mean operations and consciousness similar those airports are secure.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, truthful the- you referenced immoderate of this earlier, the crushed that we got to this governmental standoff is due to the fact that of the differences betwixt Democrats and Republicans connected the argumentation portion of this. And backmost successful January, those 2 Americans, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were changeable during migration actions. Democrats constituent to that and accidental this is wherefore they request to unit change. We saw that missive you signed, and successful it you were precise willing. You told lawmakers to grow the usage of assemblage cameras to bounds enforcement activities astatine locations similar schools and hospitals and necessitate officers to place themselves. So if you're consenting to marque those changes, what's the harm successful legislating them?

(CROSSTALK)

HOMAN: We already made those changes. We already made those changes. You--

MARGARET BRENNAN: But wherefore not enactment them successful instrumentality then? If you're--

(CROSSTALK ENDS) 

HOMAN: Matter of fact. Matter of fact. The bill- the bill- the measure they're holding up close present really gives $120 cardinal to bargain much cameras. I've already talked to them. They privation to- they privation to, you know, speech astir argumentation and legislative policy. Look, if they privation to alteration the law, alteration the law. We're enforcing laws they enacted. Because I told them--

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, they are trying to constitute caller law. 

HOMAN: Name- No, springiness me- springiness maine 1 instance. And there's not 1 Democratic lawmaker that tin springiness maine 1 example. One. A azygous one, wherever ICE arrested an amerciable alien wrong of a hospital. When person we ever arrested an amerciable alien wrong of a church? The lone 1 that violated the sanctuary of a religion was Don Lemon and that group. You know, we- we person not made those arrests, and adjacent though we don't person a sensible determination policy, the men and women of ICE person communal sense. They don't spell into schools. You know- not- not- I privation to marque a caveat here. If you're a important nationalist information menace and nationalist information threat, you person nary sanctuary. But they- they can't constituent to 1 lawsuit wherever ICE has made arrests successful those what they telephone sensible locations.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, but determination was a argumentation alteration successful January 2025 wherever the Trump medication said they weren't going to be, you know, person their hands tied successful presumption of those delicate locations. So- truthful that was a shift. 

HOMAN: Because- because- because, arsenic I said, a important nationalist information menace oregon nationalist information menace does not person a sanctuary successful this country. We're going to find them. We're going to apprehension them. However, you can't constituent to 1 lawsuit erstwhile we really went into a religion and schoolhouse due to the fact that we effort precise hard to hold for radical to permission places. We hold for them. We apprehension them successful their location oregon apprehension them successful their community. We effort precise hard not to spell into those delicate locations due to the fact that we cognize there's an contented there. So that's what I've been telling the members connected the Hill. As acold arsenic assemblage cameras, the archetypal happening I did successful Minneapolis is bring galore assemblage cameras determination truthful everybody had a assemblage camera. There is simply a program successful spot close present for CBP and ICE to spell assemblage cameras crossed the full agency. However, the wealth to bash that is sitting with the Congress warring implicit the shutdown. 

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay. Well, 1 of the argumentation changes has to bash with warrants, requiring specifically ICE to unafraid a judicial warrant from a justice earlier entering a location to marque an arrest. And that would beryllium a alteration to the existent ICE argumentation of relying connected immoderate administrative warrants. Listen to the DHS caput during his confirmation hearing.

(START SOUND ON TAPE)

HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY MARKWAYNE MULLIN: I said, we volition not participate a location oregon a spot of concern without a judicial warrant, unless we're pursuing the idiosyncratic that runs into a spot of concern oregon a residence- oregon a- oregon a house. 

(END SOUND ON TAPE)

MARGARET BRENNAN: So the Secretary agreed to that change. When does that instrumentality place?

HOMAN: I- I deliberation we're already successful discussions connected that. You know, determination are definite sections of instrumentality connected a Section I-205, wherever it's legally- you are illegally capable to participate a location and a territory tribunal has-  has upheld that. But these are discussions we're having close now. I'm talking- I speech to Secretary Markwayne Mullin each day, respective times a day. We're talking with members of the White House. We're already moving each these policies, not truly argumentation and however we- it's astir execution. Again, the laws are the laws. If they don't similar the instrumentality to let america introduction into the home, past alteration the law. But it's besides they privation an apprehension warrant to conscionable apprehension an amerciable alien. There's thing successful national instrumentality says that. Matter of fact, the instrumentality that Congress wrote says you tin apprehension an amerciable alien with an administrative warrant. That's what the national statute says. Again, but they want- they privation judicial warrants conscionable to apprehension an amerciable alien. They're asking for changes successful policy. That's truly astir changes successful the law. Again, if they don't similar what ICE is doing, they tin alteration the law. It's that simple.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, I admit your statement astir changing the law. There are galore who would similar to but there's besides the question of mentation of existing law, and the acting ICE Director, Todd Lyons, had sent a memo successful May saying: "DHS counsel reinterpreted existing instrumentality to let for agents to marque arrests without a judicial warrant." When we heard the caller caput accidental they won't participate without a judicial warrant- was Secretary Mullin stating the existent policy? Are you changing the Trump argumentation going guardant from wherever it was successful May? 

HOMAN: I'm not going to talk for Secretary Mullin, but I deliberation it was wide he's looking astatine helium wasn't the Secretary made that statement. I deliberation he's looking forward. But 1 of the archetypal things I did, I've asked for a afloat ineligible reappraisal connected that reinterpretation. I privation to cognize precisely what I'm- not, I'm not a lawyer, but I've asked DOJ to bash a afloat reappraisal connected that, and we'll spot wherever it comes. But I deliberation Secretary Mullin meant what helium said. I deliberation helium is looking for the future.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, we volition spot wherever they land. Mr. Homan, convey you precise overmuch for your clip this morning. Face the issue. Will beryllium backmost successful a minute. Stay with us.