Tom Homan, Donald Trump's hardline border czar, has threatened to dispatch a surge of immigration enforcement agents to New York City, vowing an unprecedented presence in the city as the administration presses ahead with its controversial crackdown.
In an interview with Fox News on Monday, Homan said he had reviewed an operational plan to expand Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in New York, promising "more ICE agents than you've ever seen." He said he was fulfilling a promise to Governor Kathy Hochul, made after she signed legislation preventing state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration authorities in jails.
The threat is the latest in a series of warnings aimed at New York and other Democrat-run sanctuary cities that limit cooperation with ICE. It comes as millions are expected to travel to the region for the NBA finals, featuring the New York Knicks, and the FIFA World Cup final, to be held in New Jersey, roughly ten miles from the city.
Immigrant rights advocates have issued travel advisories for the estimated ten million visitors expected for the World Cup, warning of "serious rights violations" under the current political climate, including "arbitrary denial of entry and risk of arrest, detention and/or deportation." At least 18 people have died in ICE custody this year; in January, two US citizens, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, were killed by immigration officers during an enforcement surge in Minneapolis.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani responded defiantly, saying: "Soccer would not exist without immigrants... We will not allow ICE or anyone else to sow fear in our communities – especially at this moment." He called the attacks "an attempt to divide us."
