Homeland Security secretary talks border operations in Detroit
DETROIT (WJBK) - As Attorney General Jeff Sessions put sanctuary cities on notice, the secretary of homeland security visited Detroit on Monday to talk border operations.
"No one is targeted regardless of what gets reported sometimes," Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly said.
Kelly spoke at the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit, talking about border crossings and concerns about President Trump's immigration policies and still frozen travel ban.
"A very tiny number are set aside for additional screening. That's not based on religion, color, politics - and I reject anyone that makes that claim," he said.
Kelly praised the work of homeland security, customs and border patrol and immigration and customs enforcement.
"How we look very, very hard at terrorism, terrorist initiatives -- things I could never go into but things at the highest level of security," Kelly said. "The adjustments we've made to travelers coming from certain airports in the Middle East and North Africa, and electronics. It's a real threat. The decision was made by me to safeguard the American and foreign traveling public."
Kelly was in town at the request of Senator Gary Peters, and met with leaders from the Latino and Arab American communities, Christians and Muslims -- all sharing their concerns.
"We certainly heard a lot of frustration from some of the folks in those meetings with the way these recent executive orders have been rushed through," Peters said.
But it's not just the travel ban that has many concerned -- deportations are another serious issue.
"Homeland security, ICE, CBP -- we don't deport anybody. American law deports," Kelly said. "If the laws on the books are not good laws relative to immigration then change them. But I can't change laws, but we've got to do something. We're almost at a crisis right now because you have 11 million people in America that are below the radar ... We're after the ones -- the worst of the worst, if you will -- but I can't ignore the law."