At face value, there was nothing especially controversial about Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez holding an online “know your rights” seminar for her constituents. The New York Democrat represents a district with a sizable immigrant population; the Trump administration is targeting the city as part of its plans for mass deportations; there have been accounts of legal U.S. residents getting caught up in enforcement actions; and it stood to reason that the congresswoman would want to remind people of their rights under the law.
Tom Homan, Donald Trump’s controversial “border czar,” was nevertheless displeased. Indeed, as my MSNBC colleague Ja’han Jones noted last week, the man responsible for coordinating the White House’s deportation agenda, turned to Fox News to deliver a veiled threat.
Pointing specifically to the “know your rights” webinar, Homan told viewers, “Is that impeding our law enforcement efforts? If so, what are we gonna do about it? Is she crossing the line? So, I’m working with the Department of Justice and finding out. Where is that line that they cross? So, maybe AOC’s gonna be in trouble now.”
Three days later, he appeared on CNN and echoed the point, suggesting it might be illegal for a congresswoman to inform members of the public about their constitutional rights. The day after that, Homan returned to Fox News and said he’s already been in communication with the Justice Department about Ocasio-Cortez.
For good measure, the White House’s border czar made yet another Fox News appearance hours later, telling Sean Hannity, “We’re looking for that clear direction so we can start taking action on people that want to evade — who want to help educate these people to evade ICE.”
It’s worth emphasizing for context that in 2025, some in the Trump administration want to curtail criminal investigations into Republican members of Congress confronting allegations of felonies, while others want to initiate investigations into Democratic members who’ve done nothing wrong.
As part of this apparent media blitz, Homan also appeared on a Newsmax program and decided to add an ad hominem dimension to his offensive. “She’s the dumbest congresswoman ever elected to Congress,” he said of Ocasio-Cortez.
The congresswoman popularly known by her AOC initials responded soon after, by way of social media, “This is why you fight these cowards. The moment you stand up to them, they crumble. Homan has nothing. The Fourth Amendment is clear and I am well within my duties to educate people of their rights. He can threaten me with jail and call names all he wants. He’s got nothing else.”
There’s ample evidence to suggest that she’s right. As much as Homan tried to engage in some on-air chest-thumping, he didn’t sound strong or tough during his flurry of media appearances. On the contrary, he sounded scared of a congresswoman educating the public about Civil Liberties 101.
To date, there’s been no public reporting suggesting Justice Department officials actually care about Homan’s concerns regarding the New York Democrat, and it’s possible nothing will ever come of this. But given the number of Trump-appointed loyalists in positions of authority at Main Justice, it’s also possible that Ocasio-Cortez might face some questions from federal law enforcement, which would take this story to an entirely different level. Watch this space.
