NEW YORK — The immigration battle between Washington and New York’s Democratic leadership is about to get a lot uglier.
Border czar Tom Homan is signaling that the Trump administration is preparing a dramatic escalation of immigration enforcement in the Big Apple after state leaders doubled down on policies designed to limit cooperation with federal authorities.
Speaking on Fox & Friends, Homan blasted New York officials for what he portrayed as an increasingly aggressive effort to obstruct immigration enforcement, warning that the consequences would be visible on city streets sooner rather than later.
The warning came after socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani once again pushed calls to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a position that has become increasingly popular among the progressive left but remains deeply controversial with voters concerned about illegal immigration and public safety.
Fox host Brian Kilmeade framed the issue as a growing alliance between Mamdani and Gov. Kathy Hochul to roll back whatever cooperation federal officials had managed to secure under former Mayor Eric Adams.
Rather than retreat, Homan said the administration is preparing to expand operations. “No, I’m keeping my promise to Governor Hochul,” Homan said.
The former ICE chief revealed that he personally warned Hochul months ago about the consequences of restricting cooperation between local jails and federal immigration authorities. “I met with Governor Hochul a couple months ago. I explained to her how we dealt with Minnesota, right. If we can work with the sheriffs and arrest the bad guy in the safety and security of the jail, that means less teams into the neighborhoods, which causes a lot of panic, a lot of problems, right?”
Homan argued that cooperation allows agents to take criminal suspects into custody in controlled environments instead of conducting labor-intensive operations in residential communities.
“I said but if you sign the legislation that I think you are getting about ready to sign, that means I am going to send more agents to New York because rather than one guy arresting one bad guy in a jail now we got to send a whole team into a neighborhood to find this person that didn’t want to be found because of officer safety reasons, you know, now we have to arrest this guy on his turf. He has access to weapons.”
The border czar maintained that the policy changes ultimately make everyone less safe. “I told her it’s safer for the community and safer for the officers and safer for the aliens to have these cooperations with the jails.”
According to Homan, Hochul ignored the warning. “She signed the legislation anyways. So, I made her a promise. You are going to see more ICE agents than you have ever seen in New York City. And it’s coming.”
Homan then revealed that federal officials are already reviewing plans for a major enforcement operation. “I just reviewed an operational plan. I’m not going to tell you exactly when it’s going to happen, but it’s coming. I’m keeping my promise. We are going to send more ICE agents to New York because you took away the efficiencies of safe arrests in county jails.”
The dispute stems from legislation signed by Hochul earlier this year that placed new restrictions on how immigration authorities operate within the state. The law bars ICE agents from wearing masks during enforcement activities and prevents local law enforcement agencies from providing federal authorities access to state and local facilities for immigration enforcement purposes.
Ironically, some immigration activists and progressive lawmakers complained the legislation did not go far enough. Critics on the left wanted explicit bans on additional forms of cooperation between local police and federal immigration authorities, exposing divisions even within New York’s own sanctuary-city movement.
Now the state appears headed for a direct collision with the Trump administration. For years, New York politicians have boasted about resisting federal immigration enforcement. Homan’s message suggests that resistance may simply produce more federal agents, more operations and a much larger ICE footprint than city leaders ever expected. If the border czar follows through on his promise, New Yorkers may soon find out what happens when sanctuary-city politics runs headfirst into a White House determined to enforce immigration law.
🚨 Border Czar Tom Homan Drops Truth on NYC & ICE Facility Protests
– Most violent protesters attacking officers and damaging property at the detention facility are paid, out-of-state agitators from places like Portland and Minnesota, not local peaceful demonstrators.
– Homan… pic.twitter.com/hw4aS39k0R
— Gunther Eagleman™ (@GuntherEagleman) June 8, 2026
