Rep Eric Swalwell put on a clinic on how to depose one of Trump’s immigration thugs during today’s Congressional hearing by throwing Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons words back in his face and refusing to back down from Lyons’ refusal to answer simple questions.
The Homeland Security Committee is holding a hearing today on ICE, CBP, and USCIS, and Todd Lyons was in the crosshairs.
A damning section came when Swalwell recounted Lyon’s outlandish remarks, detailing how he wanted deportations conducted like Amazon Prime shipments. His words were meant to dehumanize all migrants, they would treat them like packages on a conveyor belt.
SWALWELL: Director Lyons, last year you said in Phoenix at the Border Security Expo that you wanted to see a deportation process that was like, quote, Amazon Prime, but with human beings.
Mr. Lyons, how many times has Amazon Prime shot a mom three times in the face?
LYONS: None, sir, but you’re also…
SWALWELL: It’s the square root of zero, that’s right.
LYONS: Yes, sir.
Lyons tried to clean up his vicious words about deportations by claiming he wanted ICE to do it humanely and not punitively, which is the opposite on how ICE has been used by Trump against Blue states and his political rivals.
Swalwell let Lyons respond, but was unfazed.
SWALWELL: Well, speaking of human beings, how many times has Amazon Prime shot a nurse 10 times in the back?
LYONS: None.
SWALWELL: How many times has Amazon Prime dragged a woman out of a car by her hair and then dragged her down the street?
LYONS: None.
SWALWELL: How many ICE agents have been fired for their conduct under your leadership?
LYONS: Sir, I can get you that data. I’ll get that back to you.
SWALWELL: Is it more than one?
LYONS: I’m not going to speak about personnel actions, but I’ll get you that data.
SWALWELL: Can you tell us if at least, God, I hope at least one person has been fired for their conduct since these operations have begun.
Are you telling us you can’t even say one person’s been fired?
LYONS: Sir, I’m not going to talk about personnel actions, but we will get back to you.
Trump has run his administration based on firing people, so the idea that Todd Lyons refused to say if anyone in the whole of ICE has ever been fired is ridiculous, unresponsive, and highlights the sluggishness permeating the entire Trump immigration infrastructure.
Lyons has been running ICE and their agents like Amazon Prime during the Christmas rush by using waves of masked ICE agents in unmarked SUVs, rousting Home Depots, soccer fields, schools, people walking on the street in an effort to meet Stephen Miller’s quota.
Swalwell rightly pointed out that Amazon hasn’t shot anyone in the face.
Lyon’s refusal to admit even one ICE agent had been fired tells the entire story that ICE has been given complete immunity to do what they like in service of the racist bastard Stephen Miller’s thirst for mass deportations at any cost, including his own citizens..
