(The Center Square) — President Donald Trump’s immigration czar Tom Holman is renewing threats to “flood the zone” in New York if state lawmakers approve Gov. Kathy Hochul’s plan to limit local cooperation with federal immigration crackdowns.
Speaking at a border security expo in Arizona, Homan said he would “flood the streets” with immigration agents in states that take steps to limit cooperation with the federal government. He singled out Hochul’s “Local Cops, Local Crimes Act” legislation, which is currently being considered by lawmakers amid snarled negotiations over the state budget.
“We’re gonna flood the zone,” Homan said in remarks, highlighting the Trump administration’s immigration strategy for the coming year. “You’re gonna see more ICE agents than you’ve ever seen before … because you forced us in this position.”
Homan said ICE will also be targeting “collaterals” — people who weren’t targets of immigration officers but are still living in the U.S. illegally — as part of the next wave of mass deportations.
“I don’t care how long you’ve been here, if you’re here illegally, entered this country illegally, you cheated,” he said in the remarks. “You cheated the system.”
In response, Hochul told reporters Tuesday that the state will work with ICE in cases involving dangerous criminals but doesn’t want to see a surge of immigration enforcement.
“All I’ll say to Mr. Homan is that Donald Trump himself said he would not send a surge of ICE agents to the state of New York unless I ask,” the Democrat said. “I’m not asking.”
Homan has previously pledged to “flood the zone” in New York City and the state over its sanctuary policies that restrict local cooperation with federal immigration crackdowns.
He met with Hochul shortly after making the remarks, and appeared to back away from a crackdown after that encounter and a meeting between Trump and New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani, who took office in January.
New York City saw a surge of hundreds of thousands of migrants during the Biden administration that overwhelmed the city’s shelter system. The city has spent billions of dollars over the past several years on housing, food and necessities for the new arrivals, prompting threats from the Trump administration to pull back federal funding.
But Homan’s renewed threats of a crackdown come as state lawmakers in Albany are considering Hochul’s proposal to limit cooperation between state and local police with U.S. immigration and Customs Enforcement officers by prohibiting the federal agency from deputizing local police to help detain undocumented immigrants.
Local cops would be barred from acting as federal agents or using taxpayer funds and resources for civil immigration cases, under Hochul’s proposal.
