The NYC mayor delivered a sharp message to critics on the left about the desire to meet Trump’s border kingpin.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday he’s ready to meet with Trump’s border chief, Tom Homan, to develop solutions to deal with illegal immigrants — and dismissed criticism from the left, telling critics to “cancel me out.”
Adams was asked at a press conference about whether he would meet with Homan, who was appointed by President-elect Trump to lead the mass deportation campaign he intends to implement after he is sworn into office.
Adams emphasized the city’s openness to immigrants and highlighted the work being done to help immigrants apply for Protected Temporary Status and work authorization, as well as services including immigration case management. He said it has now seen a 21-week decline in immigration.
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams is open to meeting with Trump’s incoming border chief Tom Homan to develop solutions to deal with illegal immigration. (Luiz C. Ribeiro of the NY Daily News via Getty Images)
“But we can’t ignore it, we can’t ignore the fact that the American people have communicated with us, loud and clear. We have a broken system. They want to fix it, and we need to fix our immigration system,” he said.
He said he has reached out to Homan and said he’d like to talk to him: “I’m not going to fight this administration, I’m going to work with this administration. President Trump is the president-elect. And whoever he chooses to run his agencies, I’m looking forward to sitting down and seeing how we can make New York better,” he said.
Tom Homan, former acting director of US Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), speaks during the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in National Harbor, Maryland, US, on Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024. (Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I like to talk to our border governor, and find out what his plans are. When we have common reasons, we can work together. And I firmly believe, my history is with those who are on the other side of the road, in different ways I think, I sit down and share my ideas,” he said. “I believe that I have ideas to deal with this issue, and we can achieve what the American people have been telling us – secure our borders, talk to people who are committing acts of violence in our country and make sure that … they are safe.”
In another part of the press conference, he said that those in the country illegally who are otherwise law-abiding “must not be rounded up at midnight.”
But he said it is different for criminals who come to other countries illegally.
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“These are the people I am talking about. And I would like to sit down with the border chief and hear his thoughts on how we will deal with those who abuse our citizens.”
Regarding his critics on the left on this issue, Adams pointed to the past comments made by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former President Barack Obama, who called for the deportation of illegal immigrants, dismissing that as “cancel the culture.”
“Well, withdraw, because I’m going to protect the people of this city, and if you come to this country, to this city, and you think you’re going to hurt innocent New Yorkers and innocent immigrants and asylum seekers, this is not the mayor you want to be in the city under,” he said.
Adams has been vocal about the impact of the border crisis on New York City, including the billions it has cost the city. He has repeatedly asked for more support from the federal government. He said on Tuesday the city has seen 6.4 billion dollars spent on the immigration crisis.
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President-elect Donald Trump, left, and his incoming “border boss” Tom Homan, right. (Getty)
While New York City is a sanctuary city — meaning local police are not allowed to cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) requests to extradite illegal immigrants after they are released from custody — Adams has backed away from that position.
He called for changes that would allow those suspected of serious crimes to be handed over to ICE, something that is not currently allowed under sanctuary policies.
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Meanwhile, Homan is also open to a meeting with Adams.
“I’m willing to meet with him, and I’m willing to meet with anyone to help make their communities safer,” Homan said Monday on “America’s Newsroom” after being contacted by the Adams administration.
“Prioritizing outside the gate are threats to public safety. Work with us on that. It makes your community safer. It keeps my police officers safe. It keeps the community safe. Let’s work together to do this.”
Fox News’ Taylor Penley contributed to this report.
