Latest news with #HomelandSecurityCommittee
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
McCaul touts money in Trump tax bill to pay Texas back for fighting Biden border policies
There's a provision tucked into President Donald Trump's broadly ranging "big, beautiful bill" that could see Texas get billions of dollars in funds that it spent on the state's border security under the Biden administration. The legislation earmarked $12 billion for a grant program allowing states to be reimbursed for costs they incurred trying to stem the flow of illegal immigration during the Democratic administration. The measure was added to the bill hours before the final vote – but Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, the former chairman of the House Homeland Security and Foreign Affairs Committees, told Fox News Digital it was a product of months of negotiation. "Early on, [Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., and I were discussing reconciliation going through the Homeland Security Committee. And, you know, there was about $70 billion for the border," McCaul said. "Texas bore the brunt of the federal mission the last four years and deserves to be reimbursed. And so he agreed, had a conversation with Governor Abbott, and he agreed." House Gop Targets Another Dem Official Accused Of Blocking Ice Amid Delaney Hall Fallout While the text does not name Texas specifically, Fox News Digital was told that the measure's inclusion was primarily sought by the Lone Star state's congressional delegation. Read On The Fox News App The state of Texas, Fox News Digital was told, had incurred just over $11 billion in costs from Gov. Greg Abbott's efforts to keep the border in his state secure. "The fact of the matter is, when you look at the costs that were borne, Texas had the lion's share of [the burden] carrying out the federal mission when the Biden administration completely failed to deliver on border security," McCaul said. "My state built the border wall and built detention facilities. We bore a lot of costs." Operation Lone Star alone cost Texas $11.1 billion, according to The Texas Tribune. Rather than add it to the initial text of the bill, McCaul said, leaders opted to include it in a "managers amendment" that was added on Wednesday night along with several other issues that lawmakers needed more time to negotiate. "The legislative process, it's something I've gotten to know over my 20 years and how to get things done up here. And I thought, you know, the way we worked it was strategically very smart," McCaul said. "It's going to the Senate now. And Senator Cornyn is going to take it up, be the champion in the Senate." The Texas Republican first met with Abbott and Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., on the matter in early February, Fox News Digital was told. McCaul said he also worked closely on the push with Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, who told Fox News Digital that "no state" carried more financial burden from the border crisis than Texas. "Texas spent $11.1 billion on border security, including $5.87 billion on personnel costs and $4.75 billion on border wall and barriers. When the federal government failed to secure our border and protect our communities, Texans stepped up," Pfluger said. Johnson, for his part, thanked McCaul for his efforts in a public written statement. "Thanks to Rep. McCaul, states that stepped up to protect Americans in the face of Biden's border catastrophe will be reimbursed for doing the work the Biden Administration refused to do," the speaker said. "Had those patriotic governors not taken action and used the resources of their state, the devastation from Biden's wide-open border would have been significantly worse." Meet The Trump-picked Lawmakers Giving Speaker Johnson A Full House Gop Conference Green said of the need for the measure, "In the absence of help from the Biden-Harris administration, states were forced to take extraordinary measures to mitigate the crisis and protect their communities by building barrier systems and increasing law enforcement activity." And while McCaul and his colleagues' efforts in the House do not guarantee that Texas will ultimately see those funds, it puts them one step closer to success. The measure is one aspect in a multi-trillion-dollar bill that Republicans are working to pass via the budget reconciliation process. By lowering the Senate's threshold for passage from 60 votes to 51, reconciliation enables the party in power to pass certain fiscal legislation while completely sidelining the minority – in this case, Democrats. Trump directed Republicans to use reconciliation to advance his policies on taxes, immigration, energy, defense, and the national debt. The Senate and House must pass identical versions of the bill before it gets to Trump's desk. McCaul told Fox News Digital that he was confident the measure would stay in the Senate bill after conversations with the Trump administration on the matter. "I anticipate it will go forward," McCaul said. "I'm, just proud that we were able to get this done. I'm very proud of what my state did to stop the flow of illegals and dangerous actors coming into the country." When reached for comment, Abbott told Fox News Digital, "This is a national issue that Texas was proud to address, and we are grateful for the allocation that reduces the financial burden that Texas incurred."Original article source: McCaul touts money in Trump tax bill to pay Texas back for fighting Biden border policies
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
'I'm not here for this': Kristi Noem erupts in anger over Kilmar Abrego Garcia's deportation
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem clashed with a Democrat during a heated Homeland Security Committee hearing, defending the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia. The tense exchange unfolded as lawmakers reviewed the Fiscal Year 2026 Homeland Security Budget Request, marking a pivotal moment in the debate over U.S. immigration and national security policy. Show more Show less
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Gov. Green heading to D.C., hopes Hawaii can avoid tariffs
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Hawaii Governor Josh Green is headed to Washington, D.C., on Monday, May 19, hoping to convince the President to ease tariff impacts on the islands. 'Hawaii does not want tariffs in general, and our small businesses don't need them,' Gov. Green said of his upcoming trip. 'Again, that's something I'll try to impress upon the President, and I have already spoken with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week or two weeks ago, and I think it will settle down.' Businesses doing what they can as effects from tariffs expected to hit soon This comes just days after the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization released a forecast that projected a mild recession due to federal policies. 'If the tariffs do cause a slowdown, we could see two or three quarters of recession, and that would affect us because if travelers don't travel, if they don't come to Hawaii, we're seeing a kind of a little dip right now in international travel. It, of course, could hurt our bottom line,' Gov. Green said. The Governor is also encouraging Canadians to consider policy differences between the state and federal governments. 'I wanna say to Canadians out there, I love you guys. I love Rush, and I love hockey. Please keep coming to Hawaii. We are not a part of that discussion.' Another aspect of his trip will be speaking to lawmakers at the Homeland Security Committee's discussion about vaccinations. He also hopes to lobby for avoiding Medicare cuts, which have been a prominent part of Republican negotiations in the House of Representatives.'Right now, they're litigating whether or not the COVID response was authentic and whether it was needed,' Gov. Green said. 'I'm going to follow five individuals that have been called by the majority, and then I'm going to rebut their testimony and talk about what we saw in Hawaii, how we came together, how we were careful with mask wearing. Vaccinations were at ninety percent in Hawaii versus eighty percent, with the lowest mortality rate. We protected our kupuna. So, I'll be sharing that information, and we'll probably talk about vaccinations in general.' More issues with the federal government were recently decided on, when the state's land board rejected the U.S. Army's extension of its lease of the Pohakuloa Training Area on the Big Island, leaving the future of the military's training in Hawaiʻi unclear. 'We have to have the right environmental assessment,' Gov. Green said. 'That's why our Department of Land and Natural Resources folks felt that it was an inadequate assessment. That sends us to the next stage, which is how can we negotiate possibly a land swap that is beneficial to Hawaii. My feeling is there should be a smaller footprint overall, which is possible now with added technology. We do care deeply about our security presence in the Pacific. We also care deeply about the Aina. And most importantly, we care about our people, which is, in this case, the Hawaiian people who will feel that we've not been thoughtful about them or their history if we don't cut the right kind of agreement. So all those things are in play. We have to be careful because now we as we go to a possible land transfer or land swap discussion, we still have to be mindful of the environment, and we also have to make sure that we don't have the federal government just completely roll over us and take the land, through eminent domain. So this is a complicated one.' Check out more news from around Hawaii The Army's land leases on Pohakuloa Training Area, Kahuku, Makua and Poamoho are currently set to expire in 2029. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Time of India
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
‘I'm not here for this': Kristi Noem fumes at House hearing over Kilmar Abrego Garcia's deportation - The Economic Times Video
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem clashed with a Democrat during a heated exchange over the deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia at a Homeland Security Committee hearing. As lawmakers reviewed the proposed Fiscal Year 2026 Homeland Security Budget, Noem forcefully defended her immigration policies, marking a flashpoint in the broader debate over U.S. immigration and national security strategy.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kristi Noem won't say if Trump's photo of Kilmar Abrego Garcia's MS-13 tattoos was ‘doctored'
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has refused to acknowledge whether a photograph presented by Donald Trump depicting alleged gang tattoos on Kilmar Abrego Garcia's knuckles was doctored. The image Trump posted from behind his desk in the Oval Office shows a close-up image of the wrongfully deported Salvadoran father's hand with the letters 'MS-13' clearly superimposed above tattoos on his hand. Trump has repeatedly suggested that he believes the letters are actually tattooed on Abrego Garcia, who the administration is refusing to get out of El Salvador's jails despite court orders to 'facilitate' his return. In a lengthy back-and-forth during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on Wednesday, Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, presenting a blown-up image of Trump's photo, repeatedly asked Noem if the image is 'doctored or not doctored.' 'Madame Secretary, I have a seven year old, a six year old, and a three year old. I have a bulls**** detector. I'm just asking you, is this doctored or not doctored?' 'I don't have any knowledge as to that photo you're pointing to,' Noem said. 'What is your point?' Noem did not answer the question but repeated accusations that Abrego Garcia — who the Trump administration admitted in court documents was removed from the country due to an 'administrative error,' which the Supreme Court said was 'illegal' — was a criminal. 'It's been hanging out there for four weeks,' Swalwell said. 'You are one of the chief law enforcement officials in the country. What have you done to investigate whether the president misrepresented the reason why that person has been detained? Have you done anything to figure out whether that was doctored or not?' Noem — who heard questions from lawmakers about her agency's budget proposals — replied that the mission of her department is 'to secure our nation, and to make sure we're out there going after those that are the worst of the worst.' 'The criminals, the bad actors. Abrego Garcia is a known terrorist, a member of MS-13, a wife beater and known trafficker who should never have been in this country to begin with,' she said. While administration officials raise allegations of criminality against Abrego Garcia in public, the claims are largely nowhere in court documents in a high-profile legal battle for his return. A federal judge presiding over the case ordered the Department of Justice to provide the legal and factual basis for invoking a state secrets privilege to avoid answering questions about what steps, if any, they have taken to secure his release. The 29-year-old Salvadoran immigrant who was living in Maryland with his U.S. citizen wife and child, along with two other children from a previous relationship, has been locked up in his home country for more than a month. Administration officials have pointed to his tattoos as evidence of alleged ties to MS-13, which his family and attorneys flatly reject. House Democrats on the committee also pressed Noem for more information about Andry Jose Hernandez Romero, a gay Venezuelan man who was deported to El Salvador's brutal Terrorism Confinement Center with dozens of other Venezuelan immigrants removed from the country under Trump's use of the Alien Enemies Act on March 15. 'Listen to me: he had no criminal record,' Rep. Seth Magaziner said. 'He did not even enter the country illegally. … The only evidence your department has presented to justify his imprisonment is that he had two tattoos, one that said 'mom' and one that said 'dad.' Do you have any other evidence to present for why this individual should be locked up in El Salvador?' Noem said 'every case has used the same protocols,' including 'who they're affiliated with, their communication, who they're spending time with.' Attorneys and family for Hernandez Romero — who is now the lead plaintiff in an amended lawsuit from the American Civil Liberties Union against the president's use of the Alien Enemies Act to summarily deport alleged Tren de Aragua gang members — have denied he has anything to do with the gang. Democratic Rep. Robert Garcia asked whether Noem's office could request a 'proof of life' check for Hernandez Romero, 'just to see if he's alive.' 'His mother just wants to know if he's alive. Can we just do a wellness check on him?' he said. Noem said she doesn't know 'the specifics of the individual case.' 'I think it is shameful that you won't even request to see if this young man is alive,' Garcia said.
