White border czar Tom Homan is pressing for expanded workplace immigration enforcement, saying federal authorities should pursue businesses that knowingly employ illegal workers alongside people accused of identity fraud. In an October 19 Breitbart News report, Neil Munro described a proposal awaiting senior Department of Homeland Security review rather than an already implemented nationwide crackdown.
“I know the worksite enforcement plan just cleared last week out of HSI [Homeland Security Investigations] because I asked for the plan,” Homan told Fox News. He said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin would likely receive the draft shortly. That projected timetable did not establish that Mullin subsequently approved it.
Homan emphasized that enforcement should address both fraudulent documents and businesses that deliberately disregard hiring restrictions.
“And for employers that knowingly hire illegal aliens, it’s not just about arresting aliens. It’s about holding employers accountable so they don’t try employing illegal aliens.”
Munro presented the proposal as evidence of competing pressures within the administration. His Breitbart report said Trump had discouraged workplace operations affecting agriculture, construction, meat processing, hospitality, and restaurants because of potential economic disruption.
Trump acknowledged the political difficulty during a September gathering with Latino supporters.
“Because they’ll say ‘You’re too tough,’ or ‘You’re too soft.’ ‘Get tougher!’ ‘Get softer!’ No matter what you do, it’s always tough.”
He added, “We have to have the votes.”
Hiring record inspections offer another enforcement avenue. According to USCIS guidance, employers must complete employment eligibility verification forms to check workers’ identities and authorization. Such inspections focus on documentary compliance and should not be confused with proof that every foreign worker lacks permission to work.
Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, told Breitbart that workplace enforcement could significantly advance the administration’s deportation agenda. Homan likewise argued that restricting access to unauthorized employment would discourage unlawful migration.
Employer enforcement should mark the beginning, not the endpoint, of stronger immigration restrictions. Advocates should press Congress for a complete immigration moratorium, halting new legal admissions while authorities prevent unlawful entry and pursue tougher enforcement against the economic actors that profit off cheap labor at American workers' expense.
