‘Dial back the rhetoric’: Governor Healey claps back at Border Czar Tom Homan

BOSTON — Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey is sharing words for Border Czar Tom Homan after he singled out Boston over the weekend.

Homan’s comments at the Conservative Political Action Conference referenced Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox standing behind Boston’s sanctuary city policies.

“You said you doubled down on not helping the law enforcement officers of ICE. I’m coming to Boston, and I’m bringing hell with me,” he said.

Governor Healey addressed the remarks at an event in Boston on Monday.

“Let’s dial back the rhetoric. It’s not productive, and it’s not actually how you accomplish things in law enforcement,” she said.

Healey pointed out the difference between deporting people who are threats to public safety and going after hardworking immigrants who are paying taxes.

“I think a lot of people in Massachusetts understand the distinction of getting after people who are running drugs, human trafficking, wreaking havoc in our communities,” said Healey. “The difference between rounding up and trying to deport a bunch of people who have been living peaceably, paying taxes, working hard in our communities, and raising their kids.”

Massachusetts is not a sanctuary state but has eight sanctuary cities: Boston, Cambridge,  Newton, Chelsea, Concord, Amherst, Northampton, and Somerville.

“I encourage people to send your kids to school, go to work, go about your business, live your lives,” she said. “We’ll work together with federal enforcement and local enforcement in doing all we can to make our communities safe. We did that before Donald Trump, and we’ll do that now.”

Healey also slammed federal funding cuts at the discretion of one of President Trump’s closest advisors.

“The American people did not vote for this. They didn’t vote for Elon Musk who has total control over all these cuts happening right now. He’s taken a chainsaw to government programming, services, and funding,” she added. “All that they want to cut, why? You’re going to kill jobs and you’re going to kill people.”

According to Governor Healey, a third of the tens of thousands of federal employees that have been fired are veterans.

Attorney General Campbell filed a lawsuit last month in response to the federal funding freeze that’s reportedly preventing Massachusetts from accessing more than $165 million.

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