Days after ICE officers killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston and Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Biddeford, Maine, neither of whom the Department of Homeland Security says was the target of the operation that killed him, White House border czar Tom Homan went on Fox News with Laura Ingraham on the night of July 15, 2026, and blamed the administration's critics.
“It all goes back to the Dems who want to continually attack ICE and tell people to evade them and tell people don't comply, tell people to resist, and tell people ICE isn't a real law enforcement agency,” Homan said. “I said, if the hateful rhetoric didn't stop, there would be bloodshed.” Then: “There's still going to be more bloodshed unless they shut their mouth and let ICE enforce the laws that they enacted.” He also said he was “scared to death” that officers facing vehicle assaults would not be “quick enough.” Democrats' published “Know Your Rights” guidance, including from Gov. Gavin Newsom and several House members, tells people not to resist or obstruct officers.
Democrats had responded to the killings by calling for investigations and body-camera requirements. DHS said none of the agents involved was wearing a body camera, and NPR reported the agency again pledged to equip all agents within 60 days. The condemnation of Homan's remarks crossed ideological lines. Alex Nowrasteh of the libertarian Cato Institute: “They are blaming the opposition for people being killed by their police.” Rep. Rosa DeLauro called it “extremely irresponsible and dangerous language from the Trump administration's top immigration official” (see ICE Agents Shot and Killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Houston Father of Three Driving to a Construction Job After 35 Years in the Country, ICE Agents in Maine Fatally Shot a 26-Year-Old Colombian Worker, the Second 'Wrong Man' Killing in a Week and After Three Deadly Encounters in a Week, ICE Agents Are Told the FBI Will No Longer Investigate Their Confrontations).
Update (October 2, 2026): On October 1, Reps. Chellie Pingree, Sylvia Garcia and Greg Casar wrote to DHS that the 45-to-60-day body-camera deadline Secretary Markwayne Mullin gave after the Houston killing had passed, citing a September 20 shooting in Austin by an agent who had been issued a camera but was not wearing it.
Correction (October 2, 2026): This entry dated Homan's remarks July 16; he made them on Fox News on the evening of July 15. It spelled the Maine victim's first name Joan; congressional and most press accounts spell it Johan. It also characterized Homan as predicting more killings by his own agents; his remarks blamed Democratic rhetoric for violence around ICE enforcement, including assaults on officers, and the entry now quotes him directly instead.