Do federal law enforcement agencies that have been deployed to American cities as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown need to make changes to protect civil liberties?
Watch the clip in the video player above.
PBS News’ Lisa Desjardins posed that question to House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol Tuesday morning.
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While Johnson did not directly answer her question, he said he had “great faith and trust in the leadership” at the Department of Homeland Security, specifically Tom Homan, the president’s “border czar.”
“We all believe that immigration policy ought to be balanced and strategic and smart, and it obviously needs to comply with the law,” Johnson said. “I’m going to leave it to the experts to determine what that is.”
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Johnson’s comments came before the House narrowly passed legislation Tuesday afternoon to end a partial government shutdown, sending the package to President Donald Trump for his signature or veto.
The deal completes Congress’ work on 11 of the 12 appropriations bills, and funds most of the government through Sept. 30. Lawmakers also passed a short-term spending patch for DHS after Democrats called for reforms and restrictions on immigration enforcement. Negotiations begin now for funding legislation that addresses those concerns.
