President Donald Trump's "border czar" warned legal immigrants in the U.S. they, too, could face deportation even if they have green cards.
Tom Homan's eyebrow-raising remark came during a Monday interview with Fox Business Network’s Stuart Varney over the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist and former graduate student at Columbia University.
Khalil was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Sunday. The Syrian native holds a U.S. green card and earned a graduate degree from Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs in December. He played a major role in anti-Israel protests that rocked the university, including serving as a negotiator for students during campus protests, including the Gaza solidarity encampment.
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The Department of Homeland Security said Khalil led activities aligned to Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization.
"He has a green card. Can you deport a legal immigrant?" asked Varney.
"Absolutely we can," replied Homan. "I mean, did he violate the terms of his visa? Did he violate the terms of his residency here? Committing crimes? Attacking Israeli students? Knocking down buildings? Destroying property? Absolutely. Any resident alien who commits a crime is eligible for deportation."
Homan said Khalil will be "just one out of many" — and the Trump administration plans to "send a message" to anyone in the country on a visa.
"You're given a great — a right to come to the greatest country and study in our colleges, but when you come here to study, you gotta obey the laws of this country. You gotta obey the requirements of that visa to remain lawful while you're here. So it's a great privilege to study in this country, but when we give you that right to study in this country, don't violate our laws," he concluded.
