Good Riddance to a Fascist Monster

Great news for anyone who hates the forces of evil: Thomas Homan, the acting head of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, is set to step down from his post.

“It has been the honor of my life to lead the men and women of ICE for more than a year. The decision to leave federal service after more than 34 years is bittersweet, but my family has sacrificed a lot in order for me to serve and it’s time for me to focus on them,” Homan said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.

Given that this is the Trump administration, it’s safe to assume that Homan’s replacement at the top of what is possibly America’s most morally bankrupt law enforcement division (though there’s a lot of competition there) will not be a paragon of human rights and decency. But still, our public life will be better simply because Homan is no longer a part of it. He symbolizes, more than just about anyone else, the Trump administration’s sickening enthusiasm for its campaign of terror against immigrants.

Homan has said and done many terrible things, but his tenure can be summed up in a single quote: “If you’re in this country illegally, and you committed a crime by entering this country, you should be uncomfortable, you should look over your shoulder, and you need to be worried.” It’s the kind of statement you know will show up in documentaries and textbooks for decades to come—a perfect snapshot of depravity. And ICE has taken Homan’s words to heart, broadening its reach so widely, and with such disturbing force, that it has become little more than an agent of ethnic cleansing in America. Homan has loved it all. “I tell you what, I’m enjoying it!” he said about his job in January.

If there was any justice in the world, Homan would be a pariah, hounded out of all respectable circles and never heard from again. He would also be the last ICE chief in history. But this is the United States, so he’ll sit on lots of boards, make a ton of money, and have a great life. The people whose worlds he has so cheerfully destroyed will not land on their feet so easily.