Washington, D.C., US

US President-elect Donald Trump announced that his former acting US Immigration and Customs Enforcement director, Tom Homan, will serve as "border czar" in his upcoming administration. 

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Homan, who has backed Trump's controversial "zero tolerance" policy, will be his administration's border czar during the US President-elect's second term. 

"I am pleased to announce that the Former ICE Director, and stalwart on Border Control, Tom Homan, will be joining the Trump Administration, in charge of our Nation's Borders," Trump wrote late Sunday on his Truth Social site.

Trump further said that Homan's responsibilities would include “the Southern Border, the Northern Border, all Maritime, and Aviation Security.”

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He added, "I’ve known Tom for a long time, and there is nobody better at policing and controlling our Borders. Likewise, Tom Homan will be in charge of all Deportation of Illegal Aliens back to their Country of Origin. Congratulations to Tom. I have no doubt he will do a fantastic, and long-awaited, job.”

The term 'border czar' comes after Trump and other Republicans derisively applied that description to US Vice President Kamala Harris during the campaign, alleging that he failed in her efforts to oversee a portfolio addressing the root causes of migration from Central America. 

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Trump's Day 1 agenda likely includes a focus on cracking down on immigration, and by appointing Homan, he is placing a steady ally who has always shown a will to carry out his orders. 

Previously, Homan has promised to "run the biggest deportation force this country has ever seen.”

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Earlier in October, in an interview with CBS' 60 Minutes, Homan was asked whether there was a way to carry out mass deportations without separating families. To this, he responded, "Of course there is. Families can be deported together." 

In another interview on Fox News Channel's "Sunday Morning Futures," Homan said the military wouldn't be rounding up and arresting immigrants in the country illegally and that ICE would move to implement Trump's plans in a "humane manner."

"It's going to be a well-targeted, planned operation conducted by the men of ICE. The men and women of ICE do this daily. They're good at it," he said. "When we go out there, we're going to know who we're looking for. We most likely know where they're going to be, and it's going to be done in a humane manner."

(With inputs from agencies)