A new analysis by Accountable.US first reported by Rolling Stone found President-elect Trump’s “border czar”, Thomas Homan, could face conflicts of interest with his private consulting firm, which touts Trump’s endorsement while claiming it has secured “tens of millions of dollars of federal contracts” for his homeland security industry firm clients. Separately, Accountable.US found Homan’s far-right nonprofit group Border911 is possibly violating its tax-exempt status by promoting Homan’s political activity—including a keynote role at a state Republican party convention that sold tickets to a VIP reception featuring Homan. Homan’s industry ties add to a mountain of conflicts of interest for the incoming Trump administration.
Homan—former acting director of U.S. Immigration And Customs Enforcement (ICE) during the first Trump administration—is notorious for being one of the “architects” of Trump’s zero tolerance family separation policy, which resulted in over 5,500 child separations. By November 2024, over 1,400 children were still not confirmed to have been reunited with their parents. Homan’s new “border czar” role does not require Senate confirmation.
“When not presumably working on President-elect Trump’s kids-in-cages policy 2.0, does Mr. Homan intend to exploit his new title to steer more lucrative federal contracts to his homeland security clients for his own personal gain?” said Accountable.US Executive Director Tony Carrk. “Both Homan’s business and non-profit group have thoroughly milked his connections to the Trump brand before, why would he stop now? Homan will soon join a growing club of top Trump administration aides with glaring conflicts of interest that create perfect conditions for corruption and insider special treatment at the expense of everyone else.”
Accountable.US is a nonpartisan watchdog that exposes corruption in public life and holds government officials and corporate special interests accountable by bringing their influence and misconduct to light. In doing so, we make way for policies that advance the interests of all Americans, not just the rich and powerful.
This article was originally published on Common Dreams and republished here, with permission, under a Creative Commons license. See our third-party content disclaimer.
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