Noem on blocked ICE operations ruling: Judges are 'getting too political'

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem criticized a ruling from a federal judge that bars the Trump administration from using “unconstitutional” immigration enforcement efforts in parts of California, saying judges are "getting political" and that it is "not their job."

During a Sunday interview on CNN's "State of the Union," Noem was asked about the Friday ruling from U.S. District Judge Maame E. Frimpong, an appointee of former President Biden. The order granted two temporary restraining orders preventing officials from targeting individuals for removal based on their race, language or employment and requiring the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to grant detainees access to legal counsel. 

"Well, this federal judge's ruling is ridiculous. We never ran our operations that way," Noem said.

"We've seen this across the country over and over and over again, where judges are getting political. It's not their job," she added. "I hope they can bring some dignity back to the bench because we're lacking it now for many of these federal judges."

Noem said the judge's ruling is "wrong" and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) does not target individuals based on race, language or employment, adding that they will win their case.

"It's been done exactly how law enforcement has operated for many years in this country, and ICE is out there making sure we get the worst of the streets," she added. "So this judge made a decision that we will appeal and we will win, because he's wrong. We've never targeted individuals based on those qualifications that he laid out."

Her statement follows a Fox News interview with Trump’s border czar Tom Homan, where he said that federal immigration agents do not need probable cause to detain people for a short period and that agents can "just go through the observations, get articulable facts, based on their location, their occupation, their physical appearance, their actions."

“People need to understand, ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] officers and Border Patrol don’t need probable cause to walk up to somebody, briefly detain them, and question them,” he said on “Fox & Friends” on Friday.

His statement comes weeks after protests in Los Angeles and surrounding areas erupted over an uptick in ICE raids.