Fox News contributor Kennedy said Thursday that what she described as a “civil war” within President Donald Trump’s administration over immigration enforcement appears to have reached a turning point.
Speaking on Fox News Channel’s “The Five,” Kennedy argued that border czar Tom Homan’s more strategic, lower-profile approach has prevailed following the conclusion of a federal immigration surge operation in Minneapolis.
Homan recently announced that the operation had officially ended. The panel also discussed a podcast interview between former CBS News anchor Katie Couric and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) in which the two debated Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and arrest statistics.
Debate over ICE arrest numbers
Kennedy focused on Couric’s reaction to statistics showing that 14% of those arrested by ICE were violent criminals. She said that figure should not be brushed aside.
“The way for her to play this, especially with someone like Rand Paul, who often times goes rogue from his own caucus, would be to say, you know, we needed to get the 14%. That’s fantastic,” Kennedy said. “But how can we and other cities just focus on that 14% instead of minimizing it, and saying, ‘14% really isn’t that bad.’ Because it is bad.”
Kennedy argued that removing what she called the “worst of the worst” was the central goal of the enforcement push. In her view, even if violent offenders represent a minority of total arrests, their removal addresses a serious public safety concern.
She also suggested that state and local leaders, including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, have struggled with crime and homelessness, and that many communities ultimately support taking violent offenders off the streets.
Clashing styles inside the administration
According to Kennedy, internal disagreements over tactics complicated the effort.
She contrasted Homan’s approach with that of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Kennedy said Noem’s more public, confrontational style gave local leaders room to push back just as publicly.
“When Kristi Noem was in there grandstanding, it allowed Jacob Frey to grandstand,” Kennedy said.
By contrast, she described Homan’s method as more measured. Rather than engaging in public standoffs, Kennedy said Homan met privately with officials and shifted the focus to county jails, where cooperation was stronger.
She said Homan reported that multiple counties were willing to work with federal authorities to remove the 14% identified as violent offenders. Kennedy claimed that lowering tensions produced tangible results, including a drawdown in ICE operations and a reduction in deadly street protests.
A Civil War analogy
Kennedy framed the internal debate as a battle of leadership styles and used a Civil War analogy to make her point.
“There was a civil war within his administration,” she said, adding that Homan has emerged as the equivalent of Union Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, who ultimately secured victory for President Abraham Lincoln. She compared Noem to Gen. George McClellan, who was dismissed for being an ineffective combat commander.
“I believe that we are seeing Tom Homan is the Ulysses S. Grant here,” Kennedy said. “And Kristi Noem is the George McClellan. A footnote in history.”
In Kennedy’s telling, the outcome reflects what she said the president wanted from the start: an immigration strategy that removes violent offenders while easing public confrontation.
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The 14% figure is totally misleading. About 70% of those arrested have criminal records. Many of their crimes may not be classified as violent, but can lead to violence. And everyone slated for deportation has been and is still committing a crime by remaining in the U.S. illegally. Let’s not fall for suicidal empathy.