Following a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation that led to the arrest of a three-time felon in Virginia, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin took aim at Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
Mullin spoke exclusively with Fox News Digital after a 4 a.m. trek to Manassas, Virginia, and a moonlit raid resulted in the arrest of Marvin Len Morales, a multiple-time felon who had been deported twice before. Morales had felony drug charges and a misdemeanor DWI charge on his record.
The DHS secretary said the arrest underscored what he views as the consequences of Spanberger and Virginia Democrats limiting cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities, arguing the policies make it harder for ICE agents to remove repeat offenders from communities.
"Well, unfortunately, we're not working with [Spanberger] at all. She's criminalized us to some degree. She went out there, she's warned all law enforcement not to work with us," Mullin told Fox News Digital standing just feet away from the handcuffed migrant.
"This individual right here that we just arrested, this is his third time to be deported. He self-deported once, he was deported again. He's snuck back across, he's been living back here in this country again with a history of criminal activity. This shouldn't be happening in our streets, in our neighborhood," Mullin told Fox News Digital.
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Mullin lamented the lack of local cooperation with federal law enforcement and Virginia's sanctuary state status, arguing the policies lead to an influx of criminal activity.
"They wanted to cancel all the 287G programs," he said of Spanberger's government. "This is where we have local law enforcement that partner with federal to get these criminals off the streets like this."
A spokesperson for Spanberger punched back in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying that the governor supports prosecution of violent criminals to the fullest extent of the law, and that she is open to working with ICE to apprehend "criminal offenders."
"Under Governor Spanberger's leadership, Virginia state law enforcement agencies continue to assist ICE in the apprehension of criminal offenders as part of task forces and ongoing interagency cooperation," the spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
"Virginia Department of Corrections also continues the long-standing practice of notifying ICE when individuals born outside of the United States are in state custody," the spokesperson added. "As a former federal law enforcement officer who served search and arrest warrants alongside local police officers, Governor Spanberger will always prioritize the safety and well-being of Virginia families and communities."
"Just use Fairfax, Virginia, for example. Roughly 50% of the murders in Fairfax, Virginia... the perps are illegal, shouldn't even be in the country to begin with. That's just in Fairfax. You think about what's happening in Virginia. When you make Virginia a sanctuary city, you encourage more illegal activities," he said.
"We want to have local partnership," he told Fox News Digital. "Ideally I wouldn't want to be picking this guy up. Ideally we'd want local to pick him up. He's been picked up for a DUI before. It would have been great to have a detainer on him, go and pick him up and deport him that way without us having to go through the neighborhood."
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He also criticized Democratic leaders who he argued are placing political aspirations over following the law.
"They start causing all the political theater because they're too afraid of their own base and they're afraid that they're gonna get beat in a primary," he said. "You can't work that way, I'm sorry. Either we are going to work together to make sure that we have a nation of laws that we're gonna enforce, that by the way Congress passed, and allow law enforcement to do their job."
Mullin lauded federal agencies like ICE for their work despite a lack of local and state support.
"Right now what you're seeing is ICE doing their job. I mean, it's early in the morning and these guys are out there working every day, protecting their roads, protecting their streets," Mullin told Fox News. "We have 22,000 ICE officers, 80,000 officers throughout DHS, and they're doing their jobs."
"They're doing exactly what President Trump said he wants to. Get America's streets safe again, the previous administration let them run amok that these are criminals. Even when we have you know politicians that want to protect the criminals, President Trump is still protecting all our neighborhoods and these guys around here doing their job even early in the morning," Mullin added.
