Deportation Inc.
Trump’s Border Czar Involved in Detention Contract Talks Despite Recusal
Ethics experts say Tom Homan’s participation could violate rules meant to ensure impartiality. The White House says he has not crossed that line.
Tom Homan
Photographer: Win McNamee/Getty Images
Earlier this year, as a surge in arrests pushed immigration detention centers across the US to their limits, the Trump administration wanted more jail space. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was leading the way on a $45 billion project to detain more immigrants than ever, but the effort was stalling.
White House border czar Tom Homan, who’d said he was picked to run the biggest deportation operation in US history, helped keep the process going — working to move immigration detention contracts through the Department of Defense.