A judge ripped apart the Trump administration’s argument against her ruling this week by quoting their top goon’s own words directly from a Fox News interview.
U.S. District Judge Sara L. Ellis said she was stunned to see Donald Trump’s most notorious immigration enforcer boast about how he was looking forward to nightly check-ins in her courtroom—hours before government lawyers argued that the very same check-ins would be “extraordinarily disruptive.”
The judge had demanded on Tuesday that Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Gregory Bovino, who has faced legal censure for his team’s heavy-handed tactics, must report to her at 6 p.m. every day.
In a court filing on Wednesday evening, lawyers for the Trump administration appealed the ruling and said forcing Bovino, 55, to check in daily would cause “irreparable harm” to immigration enforcement efforts.
But their claims had already been undermined by Bovino, who gave an interview to Fox News earlier that day to “answer his critics,” telling host Harris Faulkner: “If [the judge] wants to meet with me every day… I look forward to meeting with that judge to show her exactly what’s happening.”
Ellis told government lawyers on Wednesday evening that she’d been “surprised” to watch the segment given what she had just been told.
The Obama-appointed judge noted Bovino had stated “that he was excited to come to court and that this would not impede his activities,” per the Chicago Sun-Times.
She noted that the DOJ’s stance had been “directly contradicted” by Bovino, and that his words undercut the government’s position.
“I did see Mr. Bovino’s interview on Fox News, where he did state that he was excited to come to court and that this would not impede his activities or his ability to manage the operation at all,” Ellis said during the hearing.
“So I was a little surprised just to see that the government’s position… was directly contradicted by Mr. Bovino.”
A Seventh Circuit panel had paused Ellis’ order requiring Bovino to appear before her every weeknight for the duration of “Operation Midway Blitz” in Illinois, but left the door open for further briefing.
Plaintiffs echoed Ellis in filings: “Bovino himself has stated publicly that the reporting requirement… poses no obstacle,” they told the court.
Ellis is overseeing a suit from media groups over agents’ treatment of protesters and journalists, and has ordered bodycam compliance and use-of-force reports dating to Sept. 2.
DOJ has called nightly meetings “extraordinarily disruptive”—a claim now blunted by Bovino’s televised assurances.
It’s just the latest controversy to hit Bovino, the divisive and controversial Border Patrol commander now leading operations in Illinois. Bovino was accused last week of breaching a court order when he was filmed throwing tear-gas at protesters, which was partly why he had been hauled into court in the first place.
His Border Patrol “Green Army” is in the ascendancy over ICE in the ongoing drive by the Department of Homeland Security to hit its 3,000-a-day deportation target, but it has been criticised for its heavy-handed dragnet tactics.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem this week, asking for all immigration operations to be halted over Halloween weekend.
His plea came after a kids’ Halloween parade in the city last Saturday was cancelled due to immigration officers clashing with protestors, during which a 67-year-old American allegedly suffered six broken ribs.
Noem refused and said she planned to increase the number of officers on the ground.
On the same day Bovino was ordered to report to court, DHS released a promo that critics said appeared to style Bovino in SS-adjacent clothing.
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