President Donald Trump praised National Border Patrol Council union leader Paul Perez and the many other Hispanic agency members who recently were criticized by the Los Angeles mayor and others for doing their jobs.
In a Truth Social post Wednesday morning, Trump hailed Perez and rank-and-file agents for what he described as outstanding work securing the nation's borders, while blasting Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass as "incompetent" for taking aim at Hispanic recruits and agents.
Trump also highlighted that more than half of U.S. Border Patrol is of Hispanic heritage, calling it a point of pride that undercuts political attacks portraying enforcement as anti-immigrant.
"Paul Perez and the Border Patrol have done a fantastic job, and so proud that more than half are of Hispanic heritage," Trump wrote.
He said Bass and "other Third Rate Politicians" were "complaining about" agents simply doing their jobs, adding that "nobody understands the Border better than our fantastic Hispanic population, which continues to, MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
Trump also used the post to tout what he called record enlistment numbers and pledged to keep recruitment strong, citing the administration's broader push to restore order at the border and rebuild morale in federal law enforcement.
"There is no group I am more proud of than Border Patrol and ICE," he wrote.
The remarks follow Bass' comments on CNN, where she said a report on the rising number of Hispanics joining the Border Patrol made her "sad."
Bass, a Democrat who leads the nation's second-largest city, was reacting to a segment highlighting new recruits and agents who are Hispanic and who rejected criticism that they were "rounding up their own kind."
"I think it's sad," Bass told CNN.
She suggested agents could struggle once they see "what actually happens in real life" and claimed some people join Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for financial reasons. Bass said that reflected the economic stress facing many Americans.
More than half of Border Patrol agents are Hispanic, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the CNN segment included Hispanic agents who said they see enforcement as protecting their communities.
One recruit, Juan Peralta, dismissed the idea that immigration violators are "his kind," saying, "They didn't come in the right way."
Another agent, Claudio Herrera, said, "I'm protecting both sides of the border."
The Border Patrol union forcefully pushed back on Bass's comments in a Dec. 26 post on X, saying Latino recruits and agents do not regret enforcing the law.
"WE are ALL U.S. Border Patrol agents!" the union wrote, accusing sanctuary city politicians of making agents' jobs harder by prioritizing illegal aliens over American citizens and refusing to let local police cooperate with federal enforcement.
The Department of Homeland Security reported monthly averages of an 84% increase in Border Patrol agent new hires, compared to the same time period last year.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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