Noem confronted by House Democrats, including about allegedly removing veterans from U.S.

Source: cbsnews.com


Updated on: December 11, 2025 / 5:30 PM EST /

House Democrats pushed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for answers on the Trump administration's immigration operations during a hearing Thursday on worldwide threats, with Rep. Seth Magaziner confronting her with a veteran on Zoom who he said had been issued a removal order.

Magaziner, a Democrat from Rhode Island, cited cases of veterans and military families facing removal or prolonged detention. After Noem said no veterans have been deported. Magaziner featured one such veteran, Sae Joon Park, over Zoom. In June, the U.S. Army veteran and green card holder self-deported to South Korea after Magaziner said he was issued a removal order related to drug possession charges and failure to appear in court from over 15 years ago.

"You say you're going after the worst of the worst — violent criminals who are breaking our laws," Magaziner said in an extended exchange, before adding that records and media reports show ICE has arrested tens of thousands of people with no criminal convictions, including U.S. citizens and longtime residents with deep ties to the military. Magaziner argued that deporting veterans and their families "is not what the American people think they signed up for" when they hear Noem's talking points about hardened criminals.

Noem pushed back, insisting her department is enforcing the law as written and that those unhappy with recent deportations should direct their anger at Congress, not the Department of Homeland Security. At one point during the hearing, she bristled that lawmakers were berating her for following statutes they themselves wrote, saying if they don't like the outcomes, they should "change the law."

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Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/noem-confronted-house-democrats-removing-veterans/?utm_source=firefox-newtab-en-us

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