CBS Tony Dokoupil presses Tom Homan on ICE conduct
"CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil grilled Trump border czar Tom Homan on ICE agents conduct after an gent fatally shot a protester in Minnesota.
"CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil sparred with Trump border czar Tom Homan over allegations of "excessive force" by Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents in the field Wednesday.
Dokoupil pressed Homan on the news of an ICE agent who fatally shot a woman in Minnesota after the protester allegedly attempted to run the agent down with her vehicle. Administration critics have said the use of deadly force was improper and even murder, while supporters have said the agent acted in self-defense.
During the interview, Dokoupil asked Homan whether he's seen "any examples of clear, excessive force displayed by ICE agents and officers in the field" during his time in the Trump administration. Homan replied that he had not.
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White House border czar Tom Homan declined to comment about the recent ICE-related shooting in Minnesota. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
"When I hear a thing or see a story that an allegation is made, I follow up, make sure that it's being fully investigated. But I haven’t seen one ICE officer found guilty of anything inappropriate," Homan said, adding that he is not involved in every arrest.
"I want to ask you kind of a bald question here," Dokoupil followed up. "Just a straight-up question. You’re telling me you’ve never seen, in your tenure, any example of excessive force? You’re telling me you’ve not heard any comment from any member of this administration that is inflammatory or racist or in any way demeaning toward the immigrant community? That’s what you’re telling me?"
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He continued, "I know, because I've talked to people out there all over the country, a lot of Americans are going to hear that, and they are going to be yelling at their television. They are going to be saying — the idea that there is zero, there is nothing there there, you're calling them crazy..."
An ICE agent fatally shot a protester in Minnesota, authorities confirmed on Wednesday. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
"I’m not calling anybody crazy," Homan interjected. "I’m telling you what I know, and I've seen, and I told you, there are over 2,000 arrests a day, I can't see every arrest."
"But it just comes down to zero issue, zero problems, zero comments," Dokoupil said. "It’s just not believable to a lot of people, including myself. There is nothing that you would have ICE do differently? In any of these cases? We've seen all of these videos. Nothing?"
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Homan reiterated that he has not seen any ICE agent act outside agency policy and that any officer found to have violated policy would be held accountable after an investigation.
The Department of Homeland Security said the ICE agent shot in self-defense after a protester attempted to attack them with a vehicle. (David Dee Delgado/Getty Images)
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed the shooting around midday, saying in a statement that agents were conducting targeted immigration enforcement operations when "rioters" blocked officers, and one "rioter weaponized her vehicle… in an attempt to kill them; an act of domestic terrorism."
Democratic Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the DHS claim that the shooting was self-defense was "garbage" and said ICE should "get the f--- out of Minneapolis."
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An investigation is currently underway.
ICE didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Fox News' Charles Creitz contributed to this report.
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