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Noem, Hegseth, Bondi plead with Congress for more border funding amid large-scale deportations

11 February 2025 at 10:30

FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump's newly sworn-in top Cabinet members are asking Congress to provide more resources to continue the administration's full court press to secure the border and facilitate large-scale deportations.Β 

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Attorney General Pam Bondi penned a letter to top appropriators in the House and Senate, pleading with them to designate more funds to the cause of securing the U.S. southern border.Β 

"The American people strongly support sealing our borders and returning to a lawful immigration system," Noem, Hegseth and Bondi told the lawmakers in the letter obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital.Β 

LORI CHAVEZ-DEREMER: THE LITTLE-KNOWN TRUMP NOMINEE WHO MAY NEED TO RELY ON DEMS

"Even if the price of some of these measures may seem high, they are nothing when compared to the costs our country is facing in the long term of continuing the status quo," they explained.Β 

According to the Trump Cabinet officials, their departments need a variety of resources to continue securing the border at the current level.Β 

These include additional law enforcement officers; military personnel, including Active Duty and State and National Guard; aircraft and additional means of transportation to facilitate deportations; both materials and workers to finish construction of "a permanent barrier" at the border; additional immigration judges to quickly decide cases and clear the backlog; and more facilities to detain illegal immigrant waiting for deportation.Β 

TRUMP NOMINEE TULSI GABBARD CLEARS LAST HURDLE, HEADS FOR FINAL CONFIRMATION VOTE

The correspondence to congressional leaders comes as a March 14 spending bill deadline approaches, and the chambers are expected to lay out a new spending deal to avoid a partial government shutdown.Β 

Passing a spending bill next month with satisfactory border funding could prove difficult, however, because 60 votes will be needed in the Senate. That means the Republican conference cannot pass it single-handedly and will need the support of several Democrats to get it done.Β 

SCHUMER REVEALS DEM COUNTER-OFFENSIVE AGAINST TRUMP'S DOGE AUDIT

The letter from Noem, Hegseth and Bondi also coincides with congressional Republicans' efforts to put together a budget deal with provisions for border security and pass it in an expeditious manner. However, the House and Senate GOP have begun to butt heads on how to go about the key budget reconciliation process and whether to pursue one big bill with all of Trump's priorities or to use a two-bill approach, with another being passed later in the year to address Trump's tax agenda.Β 

By lowering the threshold for Senate passage from 60 votes to 51 out of 100, reconciliation allows the party in power to skirt its opposition to advance its agenda – provided the items included relate to budgetary and other fiscal matters. The House of Representatives already has a simple majority threshold.

In a statement to Fox News Digital, Senate Committee on the Budget Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said, "Without new funding, President Trump’s bold border security plan will hit a wall. The administration needs the funding now and without delay."

He pointed to the $175 billion being allocated for border security measures in his recently-unveiled first reconciliation bill that will go through his committee this week.Β 

"Importantly, these necessary investments will be paid for by making spending cuts to other areas of the federal government," Graham explained.Β 

Β "$175 billion is a fraction of the cost of an out of control illegal immigration system that’s poisoning America and allowing violence to reign. It’s the best money we could ever spend – and it will be paid for," the senator concluded.Β 

TRUMP'S KEY TO CABINET CONFIRMATIONS: SENATOR-TURNED-VP VANCE'S GIFT OF GAB

Fox News Digital reached Senate Committee on Appropriations Chairwoman Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Ranking Member Patty Murray, D-Wash.; Senate Committee on the Budget Ranking Member Jeff Merkley, D-Ore.; House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., and Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., and House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, and Ranking Member Brendan Boyle, D-Pa., but did not immediately receive responses.Β 

White House: Trump-Appointed Envoy Richard Grenell to Oversee Deportation Flights to Venezuela

10 February 2025 at 17:33

The Trump administration announced that deportation flights of illegal aliens from the United States to Venezuela would be resuming, with Richard Grenell, President Donald Trump's Envoy for Special Missions, overseeing the first two flights.

The post White House: Trump-Appointed Envoy Richard Grenell to Oversee Deportation Flights to Venezuela appeared first on Breitbart.

Noem: Trump Can Shut Down FEMA, 'We Don't Need This Bureaucracy' Picking Winners

9 February 2025 at 08:52

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union" that President Donald Trump could shut down the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), criticizing it as a bureaucracy that picks winners.

The post Noem: Trump Can Shut Down FEMA, β€˜We Don’t Need This Bureaucracy’ Picking Winners appeared first on Breitbart.

ICE crackdown sees 7,400 illegal migrants arrested in 9 days

1 February 2025 at 10:18

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has arrested more than 7,400 people in nine days across several states amid its aggressive crackdown on illegal immigration since the new Trump administration came into office.Β 

ICE officers have been seen carrying out raids of homes, work sites, and other establishments, while deportations have also ramped up, with the Trump administration also vowing to send the most violent migrants to GuantΓ‘namo Bay.

According to a compilation of daily totals of arrests, as of Jan. 31, ICE has so far arrested 7,412 people who the agency says are in the country illegally. The agency says that nearly 6,000 ICE detainers have been placed on individuals.

NYC RESIDENTS PRAISE ICE RAIDS AFTER VIOLENT GANG MEMBER CAPTURED

ICE has posted nine daily arrest totals to X and has also posted details from various raids across sanctuary cities like New York City, Chicago and Boston where they have scooped up illegals accused of sex crimes against minors, rapes, guns and drug offenses, while violent gang members belonging to Tren de Aragua and MS-13 have also been taken off the streets.Β 

Border czar Tom Homan has said the administration is currently only targeting violent illegal aliens while Homeland SecurityΒ Secretary Kristi Noem, who oversees ICE, says federal immigration authorities are arresting the "worst of the worst" in raids. She says the streets are now safer as a result.

Many of the ICE raids have been carried out alongside other federal agencies such as the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Noem joined an immigration enforcement raid in New York City Tuesday morning in which officers picked up Anderson Zambrano-Pacheco, 26, an alleged ringleader of the violent Tren de Aragua gang.Β Zambrano-Pacheco is the same man caught on camera in a viral video showing heavily armed men kicking down an apartment door at an apartment complex in Aurora, Colorado, last summer.

Luis Adolfo Guerra Perez, 19, aΒ Guatemalan citizen andΒ MS-13 gang member, was arrested by ICE in Massachusetts last week. He was facing state gun charges and had previously been ordered to be deported before he was released by a Boston court.

ICE has published details of more than 60 cases while the White House X accountΒ has postedΒ details of at least 20 others.

NOEM SAYS 'WORST OF THE WORST' ARRESTED IN NYC RAID TARGETING CRIMINAL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

However, for the vast majority of the 7,412, details on their criminal histories are not yet available.

The arrests total come as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth confirmed that the "worst of the worst" criminal migrants will be temporarily housed at GuantΓ‘namo Bay detention camp and that "all options will be on the table" for military action against the cartels.

Hegseth made the announcement in an interview withΒ "Fox and Friends"Β on Friday and it came on the heels of an announcement made byΒ President Donald TrumpΒ on Wednesday that he will be instructing the Pentagon to prepare GuantΓ‘namo Bay to detain 30,000 "criminal illegal aliens."

"Today I'm also signing an executive order to instruct the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security to begin preparing the 30,000-person migrant facility at GuantΓ‘namo Bay," Trump said. "Most people don't even know about it."

It was later learned that Trump signed a presidential memorandum, not an executive order, on the matter.

News of the arrests has been generally well-received by locals living in these areas.Β 

Ramses FrΓ­as, a local Queens activist who’s voiced concerns over aΒ crime crisis gripping his neighborhood, which is partially represented by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said the raids have also been warmly received by the community.

"Many residents, from immigrants to citizens, welcome ICE coming in and taking the criminals out of these communities," FrΓ­as, a city council candidate, told Fox News Digital. "They welcome law and order and want safe streets."

However, not everyone agreed with the raids and Mayor Brandon Johnson recently "reaffirmed" his commitment to keep Chicago a sanctuary city, as did Boston Mayor Michelle Wu.Β 

Noem: We Won't Take Resources from Northern Border to Secure Southern Border

31 January 2025 at 02:10

On Thursday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s β€œIngraham Angle,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem vowed that the Trump administration won’t take resources from the northern border with Canada in order to secure the southern border. Host Laura Ingraham asked,

The post Noem: We Won’t Take Resources from Northern Border to Secure Southern Border appeared first on Breitbart.

Sec. Noem says Homeland Security will freeze grants to non-governmental organizations

29 January 2025 at 16:56

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Wednesday the department has stopped all grant funding to nonprofits that operate outside of government control, saying they have been "perverted into a shadow government" that feeds illegal immigration.

Noem said some non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which receive millions in federal grants, have been facilitating illegal immigration by helping aliens cross the U.S. border.

"Many of these NGOs actually have infrastructure and operations set up in Mexico, on that side of the border, and are telling those illegal immigrants to come to them, and they will get them across the border," Noem said on Fox News Channel's Will Cain Show. "So they're not just operating in the United States, they're operating outside the United States to help make it easier for those who want to break our laws."

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TOUTS 969 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ARRESTS IN ONE DAY: β€˜HERE ARE SOME OF THE WORST’

The first step to curbing the issue is to freeze the funds, reevaluate them, and make sure taxpayer dollars are going toward safe causes, she said.

"I think people are curious [to see how] grants that are given out by federal agencies [are] utilized," Noem said.Β 

Until an evaluation is completed, Noem said the department is "not spending another dime to help the destruction of this country."

She added not all NGOs are what they appear to be, and some could be a risk to national security.

"When somebody said NGO to me, I thought that [was] a nonprofit telling somebody about Jesus or spreading faith and salvation…," Noem said. "Then I realized over the years, it's been perverted into this shadow government."

Noem explained that NGOs create an entity to use taxpayer dollars, funding an operation the federal government cannot legally implement itself.

TRUMP-ERA SOUTHERN BORDER SEES MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS PLUMMET BY OVER 60% AS NEW POLICIES KICK IN

Recently, she said they have been used to undermine the country's national security.Β 

Approximately 1.5 million NGOs operate in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of State.

NGOs can range from political advocacy groups, to religious volunteer organizations or labor unions.

There are no laws prohibiting foreign funding of NGOs, whether that be from other governments or non-government sources, according to the State Department.

In 2024, the U.S. spent more than $380 million on sheltering and service programs for illegal immigrants.

Senate forces rare weekend vote to push through Kristi Noem as Homeland Security chief

25 January 2025 at 03:00

The Senate will hold votes over the weekend to accelerate the confirmation of one of President Donald Trump's key Cabinet nominees.

Lawmakers will meet for a rare Saturday session to hold a vote on whether to confirm South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Trump's pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security, to the top Cabinet position.Β 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., indicated earlier in the week that the Senate would stay over the weekend to push through the confirmation process if Democrats blocked voting efforts.

"Do we want a vote on these folks on Tuesday or vote on them on Friday, Saturday and Sunday? Because that's what we're going to do," Thune said after Democrats blocked a confirmation vote for Trump's CIA director nominee, John Ratcliffe, who has bipartisan support. "This can be easy or this can be hard." Β 

SCHUMER SUPPORTS DEMOCRATS DELAYING ALL TRUMP NOMINEES WHO LACK UNANIMOUS SUPPORT

"This is about America's national security interests, and we're stalling, so that's not going to happen," Thune said.

Noem was questioned by lawmakers on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee during her confirmation hearing earlier in the week. Β 

CONFIRMATION DELAYS STACK UP FOR TRUMP NOMINEES AS PAPERWORK LAGS IN FEDERAL OFFICES

The Department of Homeland Security deals with national security and immigration issues, making Noem's confirmation top of mind for Trump as he makes the crisis at the southern border a priority during his second term.

Several of Trump's nominees remain unconfirmed after the 47th president's first week in office. But Thune promised while speaking on the Senate floor on Friday that he "will continue to ensure that the Senate works as quickly as possible to get President Trump's team in place."

Fox News' Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report.

Kristi Noem beats Senate confirmation hurdle, advancing to final vote for DHS role

24 January 2025 at 21:17

The nomination of Gov. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., to be the next Homeland Security secretary defeated a key hurdle in the confirmation process on Friday night, advancing to a final vote on Saturday.Β 

Her confirmation vote is expected to take place at 11:30 a.m.Β 

PETE HEGSETH CONFIRMED TO LEAD PENTAGON AFTER VP VANCE CASTS TIE-BREAKING VOTE

If confirmed, Noem will become the fourth of President Donald Trump's picks to be advanced out of the Senate, behind Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe and incoming Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth.Β 

Votes that are expected soon after Noem's are those for Treasury Secretary nominee Scott Bessent, followed by Transportation Secretary pick Sean Duffy.Β 

MODERATE REPUBLICAN MURKOWSKI WON'T BACK TRUMP PICK HEGSETH FOR DEFENSE SECRETARY

The South Dakota governor is expected to receive bipartisan support for her confirmation to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Her nomination advanced out of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) by a vote of 13-2. Only two Democrats voted against her.Β 

TIM SCOTT EMPHASIZES 'RESULTS' OVER RECONCILIATION PROCESS AS HE STAYS OUT OF DEBATE

"I was the first Governor to send National Guard troops to Texas when they were beingΒ overwhelmed by an unprecedented border crisis," Noem told the committee during her confirmation hearing last week.Β 

"If confirmed as Secretary, I will ensureΒ that our exceptional, extraordinary border patrol agents have all the tools and resources and support they need to carryΒ out their mission effectively."

Watch Live: Kristi Noem Confirmation Hearing for Homeland Security Secretary

17 January 2025 at 08:06

Gov. Kristi Noem testifies before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in a confirmation hearing for her nomination to become Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security on Friday, January 17.

The post Watch Live: Kristi Noem Confirmation Hearing for Homeland Security Secretary appeared first on Breitbart.

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