Tom Homan bribery investigation: Did Trump’s deportation czar settle for $50K in money?

[ad_1] This story appeared in The Logoff , a each day publication that helps you keep knowledgeable in regards to the Trump administration with out letting political information take over your life. Subscribe here .

Welcome to The Logoff: The Trump administration has ended a federal bribery investigation into certainly one of its prime immigration officers.

What occurred? Final yr, President Donald Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan was reportedly recorded accepting $50,000 in money from “businessmen” — undercover FBI brokers — in trade for promising to assist safe authorities contracts, spurring a Justice Division investigation.

Homan was a personal citizen when he's mentioned to have accepted the money, however he had boasted about taking part in a distinguished function in a possible second Trump administration within the months main as much as the fee. The investigation was closed earlier this yr by the Trump administration.

Who's Homan? As border czar, Homan has been one of many public faces of the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration crackdown. He served as appearing ICE director in Trump’s first time period, and claimed final yr that he would “run the most important deportation operation this nation’s ever seen.”

What has the Trump administration mentioned in regards to the case? The White Home denied Homan accepted the cash — regardless of the reported existence of an audio recording of him doing so — and described the investigation into Homan as entrapment and “one other instance of the weaponization of the Biden DOJ.”

Why does this matter? The Homan story — hundreds in money delivered clandestinely in a takeout bag — could be a significant scandal in every other period, below every other administration. Right here, it’s one knowledge level in a rising physique of proof for the politicization of Trump’s DOJ, together with the Friday resignation of US Attorney Erik Siebert and a subsequent Truth Social post by Trump calling for legal fees in opposition to his political opponents.

And with that, it’s time to log out…

The latest episode of Vox’s The Grey Space podcast has some nice information: The solar will save us. That’s the promise, kind of, of environmental activist and author Invoice McKibben’s newest e-book, Right here Comes the Solar , which is all about how photo voltaic and wind power are poised to drive a clean-energy revolution. My colleague Sean Illing spoke with McKibben for The Grey Space , and you may hearken to their dialog here (or learn an excerpt here ). Have a fantastic night!