White House border czar Tom Homan said Sunday he had “no idea” what Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem’s recent remarks about ensuring “we have the right people voting to elect the right leaders to lead this country” mean.
“So what does she mean when she says ‘elect the right leaders’? That’s not really the responsibility of immigration enforcement or Homeland Security,” CNN’s Jake Tapper asked Homan on “State of the Union.”
“I don’t know. That’s a question for the secretary of state. If I had to guess, probably – you know – only those who are legally eligible to vote will vote. But I haven’t talked to the secretary about those statements. That’s a question she’s going to have to answer,” Homan responded.
On Friday, Noem said her department plays a broad role in election security. The minister claimed she has the power to identify “loopholes” in the electoral system and take “mitigating measures” to ensure local and state elections are conducted “correctly”.
At a press conference in Arizona, Noem claimed that the election falls within the Department of Homeland Security’s mission to “maintain critical infrastructure.”
“I would say that a lot of people think this is probably one of the most important things that we need to make sure that we’re trustworthy, reliable, and that come Election Day, we’ve been proactive in making sure that we have the right people voting and electing the right leaders to lead this country through the days that we have now because we know people can trust it,” she said.
Noem also said Friday that even though Homan has recently gained more control over President Trump’s immigration agenda, she “remains in charge” of the Department of Homeland Security.
The Department of Homeland Security has faced criticism in recent weeks over the two fatal shootings of Renee Goode and Alex Pretty in Minneapolis by federal immigration authorities.
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