Democrats fight ICE airport deployment
Former Department of Homeland Security Deputy Assistant Secretary Jonathan Fahey weighed in on Democratic criticism of plans to station ICE agents at airports, arguing that local sanctuary policies have made communities less safe. Fahey also pointed to Chicago after Jose Medina-Medina, an undocumented Venezuelan migrant, was charged in the killing of an 18-year-old woman, calling the case a preventable tragedy and blaming both loose border enforcement and the city’s sanctuary policies.
Milo Yiannopoulos, the controversial former Breitbart editor and British right-wing commentator, has been deported to the United Kingdom after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested him at a Louisiana airport. The Department of Homeland Security said Yiannopoulos had overstayed his authorization to remain in the United States and failed to appear for an immigration hearing.
According to a new DHS statement, ICE removed Yiannopoulos from the country on Friday, just one day after agents took him into custody at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Kenner, Louisiana.
Following his arrest, Yiannopoulos was held at an ICE facility in Alexandria, Louisiana, a key processing center for the agency’s deportation operations, before being deported.
FILE – Milo Yiannopoulos speaks during a news conference in New York on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017. The polarizing right-wing writer later filed a $10 million lawsuit over a canceled book deal on Friday, July 7, 2017. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)
DHS said Yiannopoulos legally entered the United States through New York City on May 14, 2019, but remained after his authorized stay expired.
An immigration judge issued him a final order of removal on July 22 after he failed to appear for his immigration hearing, according to the agency.
“Yiannopoulos legally entered the country on May 14, 2019, through New York City, New York. He chose to overstay his welcome in violation of our nation’s laws,” DHS said.
FILE – Milo Yiannopoulos walks while being escorted away after speaking at the University of California in Berkeley. (Stephen Lam/Reuters)
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The agency used Yiannopoulos’ removal to issue a broader warning to illegal immigrants and tout the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement policies.
DHS said it reversed a Biden administration policy that it claimed allowed illegal immigrants to fly around the country, adding that the department will no longer permit such travel unless it is tied to a departure from the United States.
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“Under President Trump, DHS will no longer tolerate this,” the agency said. “This administration is working diligently to ensure that aliens in our country illegally can no longer fly unless it is out of our country to self deport.”
DHS urged illegal immigrants to use the CBP Home app to arrange their own departures, saying the federal government is offering $3,000 and a free flight to those who leave voluntarily.
FILE – Far right commentator Milo Yiannopoulos holds protest signs while speaking at the University of California in Berkeley, California, U.S., September 24, 2017.
“Being in detention is a choice,” DHS said, adding that people who use the app may preserve a chance to return to the United States legally in the future.
Those who do not leave voluntarily, the agency warned, will be arrested and deported without a chance to return.
Yiannopoulos rose to national prominence as a provocative political commentator and former editor at Breitbart News. He drew national attention for his provocative speeches and online commentary, including appearances that sparked protests at UC Berkeley.