He defends the “historic results” achieved during Trump’s second term and denounces death threats against agents
The acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Todd Lyons, defended the “historic results” achieved during the second term of US President Donald Trump before Congress on Tuesday, despite recent incidents in Minnesota, asserting that the agency operates in the “most lethal operating environment in its history.”
“To anyone who thinks they can intimidate us: they will fail. Despite the dangers, our offices continue to fulfill their mission with unwavering resolve. This is just the beginning. ICE remains committed to the principle that those who enter our country illegally must be held accountable,” he told the House Homeland Security Committee.
Lyons maintained that the agency has achieved “historic” results during Trump’s second term. “From January 20, 2025, to January 20, 2026, ICE made nearly 379,000 arrests. Among them were more than 7,000 suspected gang members and more than 1,400 suspected terrorists,” he emphasized.
These results were achieved in a context he described as the “most lethal operating environment in ICE’s history.” “In fiscal year 2025, death threats against ICE personnel increased by more than 8,000%. Assaults on agents skyrocketed by more than 1,400%,” he told the committee.
Lyons cited as an example an incident in which a protester in Minnesota—where major protests have erupted following the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good at the hands of law enforcement officers—bit off an ICE agent’s finger, “incited by elected officials who have likened our offices to the Gestapo or the secret police.”
“The families of ICE personnel have felt unsafe in their homes. I know this firsthand because my own family was targeted,” Lyons stated, defending ICE’s role in enforcing U.S. immigration laws, which he described as based on “common sense, national sovereignty, and morality.”
U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell of California challenged Lyons during the hearing for stating that he wants “an Amazon Prime-style deportation process” and even demanded that he apologize to Renee Good’s family for associating her with domestic terrorism.
The commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Rodney Scott, and the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Joseph Edlow, are scheduled to appear before the committee. While the hearing will not focus on the deaths of Pretti and Good, members of Congress will have the opportunity to question the heads of the nation’s immigration agencies about the agents’ detention methods.
