ICE chief defends his officers' actions before Congress after the deaths
of 2 protesters
[February 11, 2026]
By REBECCA SANTANA and LISA MASCARO
WASHINGTON (AP) — Todd Lyons, the acting head of Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, defended his agency’s officers before Congress on Tuesday,
standing behind their tactics and saying they would not be intimidated
as they carry out the president’s mass deportation plans.
Lyons was one of the three heads of agencies implementing President
Donald Trump's immigration agenda to testify in a hearing called after
the shooting deaths of two Americans at the hands of federal officers.
They faced fierce questioning from Democrats, and support from most
Republicans, over how they are prosecuting immigration enforcement
inside American cities.
“Let me send a message to anyone who thinks they can intimidate us. You
will fail,” said Lyons, who blamed elected officials and protesters for
escalating rhetoric that he said endangered his officers. Lyons, who at
various points declined to comment directly on the killings of the two
U.S. citizens, said his officers would not be deterred.
“We are only getting started," he said in opening remarks.
Trump's immigration campaign has been heavily scrutinized in recent
weeks, especially after the shooting deaths in Minneapolis. The agencies
have also faced criticism for a wave of policies that detractors say
trample on the rights of both immigrants facing arrest and Americans
protesting the enforcement actions. Tuesday's testimony is unlikely to
quell simmering tensions over the centerpiece policy of Trump's second
term.
Lyons, the acting ICE director, Rodney Scott, who heads U.S. Customs and
Border Protection, and Joseph Edlow, who is the director of U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services, spoke in front of the House
Committee on Homeland Security in a hearing that lasted roughly three
and a half hours.
Agency leaders testify as DHS faces a funding lapse
This is the first time all three have appeared in Congress since the
department received a huge infusion of money from Congress last summer
and since immigration enforcement operations intensified across the
country.
Under Lyons’ leadership, ICE has undergone a massive hiring boom and
immigration officers have deployed in beefed-up enforcement operations
designed to increase arrests and deportations.
The officials spoke at a time of falling public support for how their
agencies are carrying out Trump's immigration vision. Their testimony
comes as Democratic lawmakers in Congress are demanding restraints on
immigration officers before agreeing to fund the Department of Homeland
Security. The agency heads warned the country would be less safe if
federal funds expire at the end of the week.
Tuesday's hearing was called after federal officers shot and killed Alex
Pretti and Renee Good, which sparked outrage across the country and
demands for accountability and reform. Lyons and Scott said standard
operating procedures were being followed in investigations into the
January shootings.
Tensions flared and the hearing sparked heated exchanges -- the
Democrats comparing the enforcement operations to Nazi Germany and
questioning how the administration officials will be judged -- the
chairman at times gaveling the lawmakers back to order.
The ranking Democratic member of the committee, Rep. Bennie Thompson of
Mississippi, called the hearing the “start of a reckoning" and said
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem should be held accountable.
Thompson said the department has blocked lawmakers from visiting
detention facilities and needs to be more responsive to questions.
“Every American should be outraged,” Thompson said.
Republicans shifted attention back to Biden-era policies, which allowed
countless migrants to enter the country, and said the Trump
administration has sealed the U.S.-Mexico border and is ending a
“lawlessness” in the nation’s immigration system.
Trading blame over the growing tensions
Opening the hearing, Rep. Andrew Garbarino, chairman of the committee,
called the moment an “inflection point." The New York Republican said
the deaths of the two U.S. citizens were “unacceptable and preventable.”
[to top of second column]
|
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
Committee on Homeland Security oversight hearing of the Department
of Homeland Security: ICE CBP and USCIS, on Capitol Hill, Tuesday,
Feb. 10, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner)
The administration says that activists and protesters opposed to its
operations are the ones ratcheting up attacks on their officers, not
the other way around, and that their immigration enforcement
operations are making the country safer by finding and removing
people who’ve committed crimes or pose a threat to the country.
Scott lashed out at what he called an “unprecedented level of
aggressive interference and intimidation” against federal officers
in the course of doing their jobs, calling “attacks” on federal
officers “coordinated and well funded.”
Since Trump returned to the White House, Customs and Border
Protection has taken on a significant role in arresting and removing
illegal immigrants from inside the country. That increased activity
has become a flashpoint for controversy and marks a break from the
agency’s traditional job of protecting borders and controlling who
and what enters the country.
Rare pushback from Republican member
One Republican member of Congress suggested that it was Border
Patrol commander Gregory Bovino who had contributed to the
escalation in tensions over immigration enforcement, especially in
Minneapolis.
“I would argue, in fairness, that he escalated the situation,” Rep.
Michael McCaul of Texas said.
Under Bovino, a group of Border Patrol agents hopscotched around the
country to operations in Los Angeles, Chicago, Charlotte, North
Carolina and New Orleans where they were often accused of
indiscriminately questioning and arresting people they suspected
were in the country illegally. Bovino says his targets are
legitimate and identified through intelligence and says that if his
officers use force to make an arrest, it’s because it’s warranted.
A Border Patrol agent and Customs and Border Protection officer both
opened fire during Pretti’s shooting death. Good was shot and killed
by an ICE officer.
After the Pretti shooting, Bovino was reassigned and Trump sent
border czar Tom Homan to Minneapolis to assume control, a move
McCaul praised.
Lyons said that de-escalation was because protests had diminished,
allowing ICE “to do their targeted, intelligence driven enforcement
operation.”
Lyons won't make officers take off masks
A key point of tension in Congressional debates over the president's
immigration agenda has been whether officers should be allowed to
wear masks while carrying out their jobs. Democrats are pushing to
make officers take off the masks as part of budget negotiations.
Rep. Tim Kennedy, a Democrat from New York, asked Lyons if he would
commit to making his officers take off their masks. Lyons answered,
"No,” which Kennedy called a “sad response.”
Republican Rep. Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania, asking Lyons about
allegations that American citizens were being caught up in
immigration enforcement operations, said greater transparency in DHS
operations would be beneficial.
Lyons said he was committed to transparency, pointing to his support
for officers to be outfitted with body cameras. He and Scott said
thousands of officers deployed now wore them, with more to come.
Noem said last week that every DHS officer on the ground in
Minneapolis would immediately be issued those cameras and that the
program will be expanded nationwide as funding becomes available.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
