United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said it opposes the ‘indiscriminate mass deportation’ of people.
The Catholic Church’s criticism of the Trump administration’s policies regarding illegal immigration is “wrong,” border czar Tom Homan told reporters on Nov. 14.
Tom Homan reacts to Catholic Bishops on immigration: "I'm saying it not only as the Border Czar, I'll say it as a Catholic, I think they need to spend time fixing the Catholic Church." pic.twitter.com/v9D5e1KanM
— CSPAN (@cspan) November 14, 2025
“Secure border saves lives. I wish the Catholic Church would understand that. We have the right to secure our borders like they have the right to secure their facility,” Homan said.
“You can’t enter their facility without getting arrested. Matter of fact, the penalties for entering their facilities are much worse than ours,” he said. “So the Catholic Church is wrong. I’m sorry. I’m a lifelong Catholic. I’m saying it as not only a border czar. I’ll say it as a Catholic. I think they need to spend time fixing the Catholic Church.”
Homan’s remarks were in response to a “special message” issued on Nov. 12 by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) saying the group was “disturbed” by the climate of fear and anxiety regarding questions of profiling and immigration enforcement among the church’s followers.
Homan said that under the Biden administration, more than 4,000 illegal immigrants died during their journey to the United States, which is a “historic record.” Meanwhile, more than a quarter million Americans died from fentanyl, which is also a “historic record,” he said.
According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 270,000 people are estimated to have died due to fentanyl overdose between 2021 and 2024.
In its message, USCCB said it opposes the “indiscriminate mass deportation” of people and prays for ending the “dehumanizing rhetoric and violence” aimed at illegal immigrants and law enforcement personnel.
