Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, told Newsmax on Tuesday that worksite operations are "very much a cornerstone" of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement operations.
"Oftentimes, these worksites are hubs for drug trafficking, for human trafficking, for labor trafficking," McLaughlin said on "National Report." "Actually, there was just an operation in Los Angeles that picked up some drug traffickers at a worksite, so, these are places where we do find the worst of the worst, these criminal illegal aliens that the president has a mandate to get off of American streets."
She added, "So we will continue to do that. We'll continue to primarily target these violent criminal aliens. But criminal aliens in this country should know that there is no safe haven for them. There is no safe harbor, whether it be a church or a courthouse or a worksite. We will come for you; we will arrest you; you will be deported."
On Monday, DHS told agents it will reverse guidance issued last week that paused immigration raids at farms, hotels and restaurants. The move follows President Donald Trump's weekend post on Truth Social that expressed disapproval at how farmers and hotels were being impacted by his administration's aggressive immigration enforcement efforts.
The president also directed federal immigration officials to prioritize deportations from Democrat-run cities following the large anti-enforcement protests that have erupted in Los Angeles and other major U.S. cities.
McLaughlin said that federal immigration authorities are "not going to be deterred" by Democrat-run sanctuary cities and are going to "keep on going after the worst of the worst."
"We have a fantastic U.S. attorney out of Los Angeles, and what he's been doing is getting warrants for those individuals who either have prior convictions or who have previously been deported and come back into the country, which is a felony," she said. "So we're making sure, despite these sanctuary city policies, we're still getting criminal illegal aliens out of the country."
"I think it's worth noting that when these politicians on the left – [California Gov.] Gavin Newsom, [Los Angeles Mayor] Karen Bass, [Illinois Gov.] JB Pritzker — when they tell illegal aliens, Hey, we won't arrest you, we have sanctuary city policies, then you become a haven for the worst of the worst among us — for child rapists, for convicted murderers, for child abusers," McLaughlin continued.
"And so, we're sending a message, Hey, we're not going to be deterred by sanctuary city policies. You can run, but you can't hide. We will find you."
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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