Trump Border Czar Accused of Admitting to 'Quid Pro Quo' With Eric Adams

Border czar Tom Homan, who is helping President Donald Trump's administration carry out its hardline immigration policies, was accused by critics of admitting to "quid pro quo" with New York City Mayor Eric Adams during an appearance on Fox News on Friday.

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) moved to drop bribery charges against Adams, citing concerns that the ongoing case was compromising the Democratic mayor's ability to assist the Trump administration with its crackdown on illegal immigration and November's mayoral election.

Newsweek reached out to the DOJ via online form for comment on Friday.

Why It Matters

The DOJ's decision to order federal prosecutors in New York to drop the case against Adams was met with criticism by those who viewed it as corrupt. They raised concerns that the mayor would feel pressured to comply with the Trump administration's policies since there is the possibility that the Trump administration could bring back the charges at any time.

What To Know

Adams and Homan, both former police officers, appeared together on Fox & Friends on Friday morning to talk about their plans to collaborate on immigration enforcement. During the discussion, Adams reiterated his support for going after "dangerous people" on the streets of New York City, which he said he's been talking about since 2022.

At one point in the interview, Homan said, "If he doesn't come through, I'll be back in New York City. And we won't be sitting on the couch. I'll be in his office, up his butt, saying, 'Where the hell is the agreement we came to?'"

While Adams was chuckling during Homan's remarks, viewers on social media took the matter seriously, claiming that the border czar's comments showed an admission to a "quid pro quo."

Ed Krassenstein, a frequent Trump critic, shared a clip of Homan's remarks on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday, writing, "Sure sounds like a quid pro quo to me."

When Homan appeared on CNN's State of the Union two days after the Fox & Friends interview, he said his comments to Adams were "a joke."

"This is a conversation between two cops having a good time, and people are making a lot out of nothing," he said.

During the Fox & Friends interview on Friday, Adams rejected allegations of a quid pro quo, calling them "silly."

"Think about my attorney, Alex Spiro, one of the top trial attorneys in the country. Imagine him going inside saying that 'the only way Mayor Adams is going to assist in immigration, which I was calling for since 2022, is if you drop the charges.' That's quid pro quo. That's a crime," he said.

Adams also released a statement on Friday that was shared with Newsweek: "I want to be crystal clear with New Yorkers: I never offered—nor did anyone offer on my behalf—any trade of my authority as your mayor for an end to my case. Never.

"I am solely beholden to the 8.3 million New Yorkers that I represent and I will always put this city first. Now, we must put this difficult episode behind us so that trust can be restored, New York can move forward, and we can continue delivering for the people of this city," he added.

"I really don't think it had anything to do with whatever is going on at the Justice Department. We never talked about that. It's kind of out of my lane," Homan added.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, Adams announced that he would issue an executive order allowing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents into the Rikers Island jail complex to help in criminal investigations "in particular those focused on violent criminals and gangs."

The move came after a meeting between Adams and Homan, but the mayor's office pointed Newsweek to multiple occasions before the DOJ moved to drop the case and before Trump even took office when Adams expressed his openness to sending ICE agents back to Rikers Island after they were banned from the jail complex in 2014.

Homan said on CNN's State of the Union, "That's ridiculous," when host Dana Bash asked him, "It sounds like the DOJ dropped the case against Adams, and in exchange, he let you into Rikers. Is that what happened?"

DOJ Orders Dismissal of Adams' Case

The DOJ's decision to push for Adams' charges to be dropped was outlined in a two-page memo by acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, who said the prosecution was "unduly restricting" Adams' ability to focus on critical issues like illegal immigration and violent crime.

Bove stressed that the dismissal was not based on the strength of evidence but on the timing of the charges, which, he said, were brought too close to the mayoral election. The memo instructed New York prosecutors to cease further investigative actions until after the November election, leaving the door open for revisiting the case later.

Adams was indicted in September 2024 on bribery and campaign finance offenses dating back to his days as Brooklyn borough president, a position he was elected to in 2014. He was accused of accepting more than $100,000 in luxury travel gifts and illegal campaign contributions from foreign businesspeople and at least one Turkish official. In exchange, he pressured the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) to open a consulate in New York without a fire inspection. Adams denied all the allegations against him.

Meanwhile, acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Danielle Sassoon and several other DOJ officials have resigned, refusing to comply with the DOJ's order to dismiss Adams' charges.

Sassoon said in her resignation letter sent Wednesday that at a meeting in late January—attended by Manhattan federal prosecutors, DOJ lawyers and Adams' lawyers, per The New York Times—the mayor's attorneys offered "what amounted to a quid pro quo."

Bove wrote in a footnote in Monday's order that he said at the meeting that "the government is not offering to exchange dismissal of a criminal case for Adams' assistance on immigration enforcement."

What People Are Saying

The X, formerly Twitter, account "Republicans against Trump" wrote: "A day after it was revealed that Trump's DOJ dropped the criminal case against Eric Adams as a quid pro quo...Trump's 'border czar,' Tom Homan, told the NYC mayor during a joint appearance on Fox & Friends (Trump's favorite show) that he must adhere to the 'agreement' they reached," adding, "The corruption is out in the open."

Former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance, who has been critical of Trump, wrote on X that Homan's remarks were "confirmation that the DOJ lawyers who resigned yesterday had correctly assessed the situation."

Susan Simpson, a Washington, D.C.-based attorney, on X: "We're not even a month in yet, and the Trump Administration is openly prosecuting people based on whether or not they grant political favors to the president."

Attorney Andrew McCarthy wrote in the National Review on Tuesday: "Politicized law enforcement is always wrong. And it is not more attractive when it insulates a politician from what appears to be righteous law enforcement than when it targets a politician with what appears to be discriminatory law enforcement. That is the lesson of the Trump Justice Department's dropping of the corruption case against New York City's Democratic mayor, Eric Adams."

What Happens Next

Despite his legal troubles, Adams is still running for re-election this year. On Thursday, he told NBC New York that he "100 percent" will be seeking the Democratic nomination, rather than the Republican nomination, in the June primary, following speculation that he may change parties following the Trump administration's move to dismiss his charges.

Update and Correction 2/14/25, 5:27 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information, reflecting that Adams' charges have yet to be dropped and the correct spelling of Sassoon's last name.

Update 2/14/25, 6:51 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.

Update 2/14/25, 7:13 p.m. ET: This article was updated with a statement from Adams.

Update 2/17/25, 2:38 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with Homan's remarks on State of the Union.