Federal agency heads carrying out President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda defended enforcement operations during a congressional oversight hearing on Tuesday.
Acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Todd Lyons, Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Joseph Edlow gave prepared testimony and fielded questions from lawmakers in both parties during the hearing.
Their testimony before the House Homeland Security Committee comes as public support for the administration’s immigration policies has declined.
ICE’s efforts and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services fraud referrals
In opening statements, Lyons told the committee his agency is successfully meeting the president’s mandate to deport migrants living in the country illegally. In the last year, ICE made 379,000 arrests and removed over 475,000 people from the country.
“The president tasked us with mass deportation, and we are fulfilling that mandate,” Lyons said.
Lyons said that ICE officers will not be deterred by public pressure or harassment. He noted that his own family has faced intimidation but warned such efforts “will fail,” adding, “we are only getting started.”
Edlow focused his opening remarks on fraud detection, stating that the Citizenship and Immigration Services agency made more than 33,000 fraud referrals to law enforcement over the last year.
“Fraud isn’t just a paperwork issue, it’s a national security and public safety concern,” Edlow said. He also urged Congress to end various deportation protections, such as Temporary Protected Status, which the Trump administration has sought to remove.
Funding deadlock and shutdown risks
House Speaker Mike Johnson said he would meet with Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Tuesday to discuss the GOP’s options in regard to a Homeland Security funding bill.
The DHS is currently funded through Feb. 13. Democrats have demanded changes to ICE operations as a condition for the spending bill.
Johnson expressed optimism about avoiding a shutdown of the agency, “I’m very hopeful. I mean, we still have some time on the clock. When there’s a will, there’s a way.”
He argued that a funding lapse would most harm agencies like FEMA, Secret Service, TSA and the Coast Guard.
“The reason they are in the Homeland Security bill is because those are the agencies charged with keeping Americans safe,” Johnson said. “Why would Democrats play political games with that?”
Partisan divide evident during questions
During the hearing, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., pressed Lyons to resign. Lyons declined. The exchange followed Lyons’ refusal to apologize to the families of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, Americans killed during protests over immigration enforcement actions in Minneapolis.
Lyons said he would leave specific comments to others in the administration and declined to comment on claims that Good and Pretti were involved in domestic terrorism, citing ongoing investigations.
Lyons added he would welcome the opportunity to speak to the families of the two individuals killed.
Several representatives pushed for transparency and accountability for ICE enforcement agents’ efforts.
Rep. Dan Goldman D-N.Y., compared masked ICE agents to the enforcements of Nazi Germany and the former Soviet Union.
Lyons interrupted and said the congressman was asking “the wrong type of questioning.”
“If you don’t want to be called a fascist regime or secret police, then stop acting like one,” Goldman said.
Goldman also dismissed explanations as to why federal agents were wearing masks during operations as “outright bogus.”
That was not the only instance masks were brought up during the hearing.
When Rep. Tim Kennedy, a Democrat from New York, asked Lyons if he would commit to requiring officers to work maskless in identifiable uniforms, Lyons replied, “No.”
Lyons said he supports officers who feel they need to wear a mask to protect their families and their identities.
Kennedy expressed disappointment at the response, calling it “sad,” adding, “People who are proud of what they do aren’t hiding their identity.”
The hearing turned to the treatment of 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos during a recent incident in Minneapolis. Rep. Brad Knott, R-N.C., asked Lyons to address allegations that agents used the boy as bait to draw one of his parents out of their home.
Lyons denied the allegations, saying that officers took care of the boy after his father fled the scene. Lyons said the agents played the boy’s favorite music and took him to McDonald’s.
How will ICE efforts affect the World Cup?
Rep. Nelli Pou, D-N.J., whose district will host several matches during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, asked for a pause in ICE operations during the events, to prevent visitors’ fear of being “wrongfully incarcerated or wrongfully pulled out.” She warned that visitor confidence is “plummeting.”
Lyons said the agency is “dedicated to the security of all our participants as well as visitors,” but did not commit to a suspension of enforcement.
The committee chairman noted the record will remain open for 10 days for witnesses to provide written responses to unanswered questions.