CBP warns of consequences if DHS isn’t funded
Tom Homan, the Trump administration’s border czar, warned Sandra Smith and John Roberts that the partial government shutdown could create serious national security risks by disrupting Department of Homeland Security funding. Homan pointed to potential operational breakdowns at U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, including problems involving equipment, intelligence systems and employee pay. He called on Congress to fund homeland security on a bipartisan basis and criticized efforts to restrict federal immigration enforcement.
A Biden-era policy that allowed federal immigration officials to seek and accept private donations for the care of illegal immigrants in custody has been ended by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The agency said the arrangement no longer fits the Trump administration’s tougher approach to border enforcement.
CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott immediately withdrew the agency from a 2022 Department of Homeland Security directive, according to an internal memo obtained exclusively by Fox News.
The directive had authorized the heads of CBP and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to solicit, receive and use gifts intended to support illegal immigrants held in agency custody.
TRUMP ADMIN MARKS 15 STRAIGHT MONTHS WITH ZERO BORDER RELEASES AS APPREHENSIONS PLUNGE 94%
The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) headquarters in Washington, D.C., on May 10, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“This delegation order is no longer needed or appropriate,” Scott wrote. He said the sharp decline in encounters and apprehensions meant CBP no longer needed private donations or gifts to distribute to aliens in custody.
Scott also said the policy was inconsistent with the Trump administration’s stronger border enforcement posture and the related presidential actions issued by the administration.
“For these reasons, I am withdrawing CBP from DHS Delegation 07107, Rev. 1 effective immediately,” Scott wrote.
MORE ON THIS: Adri Mehmeti Poised for USMNT Breakthrough With ‘Big Step’
From left, Rodney Scott, commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Joseph Edlow, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Todd Lyons, acting director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, are sworn in during a House oversight hearing on Capitol Hill, Feb. 10, 2026. (Tom Brenner/AP Photo)
CBP confirmed the decision to Fox News, saying agency officials recently became aware of the directive and moved to end the agency’s participation. The withdrawal applies only to CBP; Scott’s memo does not indicate that ICE has been removed from the DHS policy.
The original delegation was signed on May 3, 2022, by John K. Tien, who was then the deputy secretary of Homeland Security.
DHS BUYS TWO CALIFORNIA MIGRANT DETENTION CENTERS FOR $1.5B TO BOOST ICE DEPORTATION CAPACITY
A Customs and Border Protection vehicle pulls over a commercial tractor trailer, left, pictured alongside an officer speaking to a driver, right. (Customs and Border Protection)
The directive also gave the CBP commissioner and ICE director permission to seek specific gifts connected to the care of illegal immigrants in agency custody.
Scott said CBP had requested the authority because facilities were facing an “elevated number of aliens encountered, processed and held” at the time. He said the substantial drop in encounters and apprehensions means the agency no longer needs private donations or gifts for migrants in custody.
“CBP will continue to provide care for aliens in our custody through our normal appropriations,” Scott wrote.
CHECK THIS OUT: Unveiling the Hidden Battle: Dennis Cometti’s Secret Illness and the Truth Behind His Passing