Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem says “we haven’t taken anything off the table” on expanding immigration operations to other cities

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that “we haven’t taken anything off the table” when asked about expanding immigration enforcement operations to cities throughout the U.S. 

“I think there’s a lot of cities that are dealing with crime and violence right now. And so, we haven’t taken anything off the table. We’ve been making sure that we have the resources and the equipment to go in,” Noem said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”

CBS News reported last week that Immigration and Customs Enforcement is planning to expand its operations to Chicago in the coming days, mirroring the immigration arrest operation seen in Los Angeles earlier this year.

Noem said Sunday that there’s been “ongoing operations with ICE in Chicago and throughout Illinois and other states, making sure that we’re upholding our laws.” But she acknowledged that “we do intend to add more resources to those operations.”

Though she wouldn’t disclose details of the operation for the security of the law enforcement on the ground, Noem said “we will continue to go after the worst of the worst across the country, like President Trump has told us to do.”

The Trump administration has set its sights on a number of cities that limit local cooperation with federal immigration agents in recent months, bringing lawsuits against the so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions and pursuing other means of intervention. Noem’s comments also come as the president has zeroed in on fighting crime in the nation’s major cities, beginning with an effort in Washington, D.C., in recent weeks while he teased broader efforts elsewhere. 

Earlier this month, Mr. Trump federalized the District of Columbia’s Metropolitan Police Department and deployed the National Guard to the district to assist law enforcement. While the president has unique authority over the D.C. National Guard because the district is controlled by the federal government, his deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles in June amid heated protests over immigration raids prompted a lawsuit from the California’s Democratic governor, who did not approve of the use of his state’s Guard forces.

On Sunday, Noem…