Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) has formally asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to confirm whether she is under investigation for allegedly obstructing the Trump administration’s immigration agenda, following pointed threats from “border czar” Tom Homan.
In a letter sent Thursday to Attorney General Pam Bondi, the congresswoman challenged what she calls an attempt to “weaponize” the DOJ against her free speech, spotlighting a contentious clash over her “Know Your Rights” webinar aimed at informing immigrants about their legal protections.
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The webinar, hosted by Ocasio-Cortez’s office on February 12, advised constituents—many in her Bronx and Queens district, part of New York City’s “sanctuary” jurisdiction—on how to handle encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Homan, tasked with spearheading President Donald Trump’s mass deportation push, has repeatedly flagged the event as a potential violation of federal law. On Fox News earlier this month, he questioned whether it amounted to “impeding our law enforcement efforts,” adding, “I’m working with the Department of Justice and finding out … Maybe AOC’s gonna be in trouble now.”
Homan confirmed he’d reached out to the deputy attorney general to review the matter.
In her letter, first reported by Axios, Ocasio-Cortez fired back, asserting that her actions are shielded by the First Amendment. “I write to request clarity on whether the Department of Justice has yielded to political pressure and attempts to weaponize the agency against elected officials whose speech they disagree with,” she wrote. “Over the past two weeks, ‘Border Czar’ Tom Homan has gone on multiple forums threatening political prosecution against me, citing resources I distributed informing my constituents and the American public of their constitutional and legal rights.”
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She noted that 14 days have passed since Homan’s initial threat on February 13 without any official referral, demanding Bondi respond by March 5.
Ocasio-Cortez framed Homan’s rhetoric as a direct attack on constitutional freedoms. “Threatening criminal proceedings for exercising the First Amendment is itself a violation of the First Amendment,” she argued, calling it “a textbook threat to the right to free speech in the United States.”
Her website reinforces this stance, advising constituents facing immigration raids that they aren’t obligated to open doors, speak to ICE, or comply without legal counsel—guidance legal experts say aligns with Fourth and Fifth Amendment protections.
The dispute unfolds against the backdrop of Trump’s vow to execute the “largest deportation operation in American history,” a response to what he and his allies decry as lax enforcement under President Joe Biden, during whose term millions of illegal immigrants entered the U.S.
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Homan, a key architect of this agenda, has cast Ocasio-Cortez’s webinar as an effort to thwart ICE operations, though he’s offered no concrete evidence of illegality beyond seeking DOJ input. Meanwhile, left-leaning activists in cities like Los Angeles have similarly worked to blunt immigration raids, amplifying tensions over Trump’s plans.
Public opinion adds another layer: three recent polls show more Americans favor deporting illegal immigrants than oppose it, despite Democratic criticism labeling the policy “cruel and inhumane.”
Ocasio-Cortez, representing a district where sanctuary policies limit local cooperation with federal immigration agents, remains defiant, arguing her duty includes educating constituents about their rights amid rising enforcement.
The DOJ has yet to comment publicly, leaving the investigation’s status unclear. Legal scholars suggest any probe would face steep hurdles, given robust free speech precedents and the legality of “Know Your Rights” sessions—routinely held by groups like the ACLU—unless direct evidence of obstruction emerges.
For now, Ocasio-Cortez’s letter escalates a high-profile standoff, pitting her against Trump’s immigration enforcers and testing the bounds of political speech in a polarized era.
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