By JILL COLVIN, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) – President-elect Donald Trump says Tom Homan, his former acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, will serve as “border czar” in his new administration.

“I am pleased to announce that former ICE Director and Border Control stalwart Tom Homan will join the Trump Administration, in charge of our nation’s borders,” he wrote Sunday evening on its Truth Social website.

It was widely expected that Homan would be offered a position related to the border and Trump’s commitment to launch the largest eviction operation in the history of the country.

In addition to overseeing the southern and northern borders and “sea and air security,” Trump said Homan “will be responsible for all deportations of illegal aliens to their home countries,” a central part of his agenda.

He said he had “no doubt” that Homan “would do a fantastic and long overdue job.”

Such a role does not require Senate confirmation.

In an interview with Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures,” Homan said the military would not round up or arrest immigrants in the country illegally and that ICE would take steps to enforce implements Trump’s plans in a “humane way.”

“This will be a well-targeted and planned operation carried out by ICE personnel. The men and women of ICE do it every day. They’re good at it,” he said. “When we go there, we’ll know who we’re looking for. We most likely know where they’re going to be, and it’ll be done in a humane way.”

Earlier this year, at the National Conservatism Conference in Washington, Homan expressed frustration with media coverage of a mass deportation operation.

“Wait until 2025,” he said, adding that while he believes the government must prioritize national security threats, “no one is excluded.” If you’re here illegally, you better look over your shoulder.

He also said: “You have my word. Trump will return in January, I will be hot on his heels, and I will lead the largest deportation operation this country has ever seen.”

Associated Press writer Adriana Gomez Licon in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., contributed to this report.

Originally published: November 11, 2024 at 8:41 a.m. CST