Who is Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino? And why did he appear before a federal judge?

New York Post

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00:00Amid a massive shakeup in the Department of Homeland Security, one leader is making a

00:04name for himself, with aims to nab the worst of the worst illegal immigrants with criminal

00:09records in Chicago.

00:11But some in the federal courts are trying to damper his efforts, leading Chicago's

00:15premier immigration crackdown, known as Operation Midway Blitz.

00:19Who is Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino, and why are his aggressive immigration crackdown

00:24tactics causing such an uproar on the left?

00:27Here's what you need to know.

00:29Since Trump's electoral victory, finding, arresting, and deporting illegal immigrants

00:33within the U.S. has become a major White House initiative, with President Trump promising

00:38to bring about the single largest mass deportation program in history.

00:42The announcement coincided with a major plan to flood Democrat-run cities, namely New York,

00:47Los Angeles, and Chicago, with new, larger waves of ICE agents.

00:52In recent weeks, Chicago has emerged as the epicenter for DHS efforts thus far.

00:56The department launched Operation Midway Blitz in early September, which targeted criminal

01:01illegal aliens who flocked to the Windy City because of its sanctuary policies.

01:06The in-your-face leader and public face of the crackdown in Chicago has been Border Patrol

01:11Commander Greg Bovino, a nearly 30-year veteran of the patrol who has garnered both online criticism

01:17and praised for his enforcement tactics, and who is featured in Hollywood-esque promotional

01:21videos of the agency's work.

01:24Bovino, who styles his hair in a distinctive crew cut, noticeably doesn't wear a face mask

01:29to conceal his identity like many other federal agents engaged in immigration raids do.

01:34According to Newsweek, a spokesperson for DHS explained that it's pointless for the leader

01:38to wear a mask, since gang members and terrorists already know who he is, and have even put a price

01:44on his head.

01:45In early October, a suspected Latin King's gangbanger was arrested in a Chicago suburb,

01:51after he allegedly placed a $10,000 kill bounty on their Border Patrol commander.

01:56While more Americans are becoming familiar with Bovino as videos of his Chicago operations

02:00circulate online, and he makes the media rounds, his career didn't begin in the Windy City.

02:05The 55-year-old North Carolina native made his start at the U.S. Border Patrol in California,

02:10and eventually worked his way up the ranks to assistant chief in the Special Operations

02:14Division in Washington, D.C. in 2004.

02:18Bovino went on to become patrol agent in charge in several regions across the country, before

02:23heading back to California in 2020, where he was promoted to chief patrol agent of the

02:27El Centro sector, according to Newsweek.

02:30And before Bovino started his work with the Trump administration on immigration crackdown

02:34in Chicago in September, he led operations in Los Angeles in June, where his mission was

02:39to round up and deport undocumented immigrants as part of the Trump administration's operation

02:44at large.

02:45In July, Bovino and dozens of agents stormed MacArthur Park in Los Angeles as a show of force

02:51to protect residents from MS-13 gangbangers and open-air drug markets.

02:56LA's Mayor Karen Bass was critical of the raid, alleging what she saw in the park looked

03:01like a city under siege.

03:03Now you can spin it any way you like, but in my opinion, it's a political agenda of provoking

03:09fear and terror.

03:11Frankly, it is outrageous and un-American that we have federal armed vehicles in our parks when

03:19nothing is going on in the parks.

03:22But Bovino was steadfast in his response, reminding the mayor on Fox 11 Los Angeles that she wasn't

03:28the federal agent's boss.

03:29The federal government is not leaving LA.

03:31I don't work for Karen Bass.

03:33The federal government doesn't work for Karen Bass.

03:35We're going to be here until that mission is accomplished, as I said.

03:39And better get used to us now, because this is going to be normal very soon.

03:44On September 16, Bovino announced on X that federal agents had made their way to Chicago

03:49to continue the mission they started in LA.

03:52Not only do we continue operations here in Los Angeles, but we're taking this show on the

03:58road to a city near you.

03:59In what would later be called Operation Midway Blitz, CPB agents have made about 1,500 arrests

04:05in the Chicago area since September 16, according to internal DHS statistics obtained by CBS News,

04:12and documented in slickly produced DHS videos.

04:21But it hasn't all been as glossy as the videos make it seem, as Bovino's illegal immigration

04:26operations in Chicago have come under fire over reports that agents have been heavy-handed

04:31with their enforcement tactics.

04:33One shocking video from late October captured Border Patrol agents dragging a 67-year-old man

04:38from his car and pinning him to the ground in an immigration enforcement operation during

04:43a children's Halloween parade in Chicago.

04:46The man, who was driving home after a morning run, was reportedly dragged out of the car and

04:51thrown to the ground shortly after agents threatened to break his windows if he didn't

04:55move his car.

04:56The man's running club claimed he suffered six broken ribs, which caused internal bleeding

05:00during the detainment.

05:02The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately answer the Post's request for

05:05a comment on the arrest of the man featured in the video.

05:08Growing friction in the Department of Homeland Security is leading to a mass shakeup of ICE

05:12leadership over deportation tactics and priorities.

05:15DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, Senior Advisor Corey Lewandowski and Bovino have pushed for a broader and more

05:22aggressive approach to immigration enforcement, targeting anyone in the U.S. illegally to boost

05:28deportation numbers.

05:29On the other side are Border Czar Tom Homan and ICE Director Todd Lyons, who have advocated focusing on

05:35criminal aliens and those with final deportation orders.

05:39Officials told Fox News that ICE field offices in at least eight cities will replace many senior

05:44leaders with Border Patrol officials, marking an unprecedented power shift.

05:49Another incident has also been plaguing Bovino's operations and has even landed the commander

05:54in federal court.

05:55On Tuesday, District Judge Sarah Ellis, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, ordered Bovino

06:01to appear in person at North Illinois District Court every weekday at 5.45 p.m. to brief the

06:07court on Operation Midway Blitz.

06:10The directive stemmed from a broader order that required U.S. Customs and Border Protection

06:14to provide all use of force reports and body camera footage since September, amid concerns

06:19over federal law enforcement's response to anti-immigration enforcement protesters.

06:24Ellis had issued a temporary restraining order in early October, which limited federal officers

06:28from using certain forceful tactics, including tear gas deployment, unless officers were facing

06:34imminent threat.

06:35On October 24th, protesters and media organizations entered a court filing against Bovino, alleging

06:41the commander violated the temporary restraining order when he deployed a tear gas canister

06:46during an October 23rd enforcement operation.

06:49In defense of the actions, DHS posted video of the incident in question, which showed agents

06:53being surrounded by up to 100 anti-ICE rioters, who threatened in through rocks at officers.

06:59Just hours before Bovino was scheduled to check in with the Northern Illinois District Court

07:03on October 29th, a federal appeals court temporarily paused Ellis' order, requiring Bovino to provide

07:09daily in-person updates on immigration enforcement activities in the Windy City.

07:14The DOJ argued that forcing the commander to show up to court every day would significantly

07:18disrupt immigration enforcement operations.

07:21Like his counterpart in Los Angeles, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has been critical of Bovino

07:26and his agent's actions, and has been calling for accountability, even going so far as to

07:31label the DHS official as barbaric in the hours before he was set to appear in court.

07:36The Trump administration said that they were going to go after the worst of the worst, like

07:42criminals, individuals who have caused harm, and that's not what's happening.

07:50And so what is happening, though, is Bovino is a barbaric individual, and I just hope that

08:02this judge provides some level of accountability, because that's not what's happening right now.

08:09Bovino was quick to fire back at the far-left mayor, though, blasting him for not knowing his

08:14own city dwellers.

08:15Mayor Johnson is so out of touch with his inner city.

08:18We talk with the inner city residents on a daily basis.

08:21They're glad we're there.

08:23And as far as terrorizing, if you're a criminal, illegal alien, or an illegal alien, then you're

08:28going to go to jail and be deported.

08:30In early October, Bovino posted a video on X showing him interacting happily with Chicagoans.

08:35Capturing the video, these fine Chicagoans got fist bumps instead of handcuffs.

08:40With Chicago's support, Operation Midway Blitz will be here until we accomplish our mission.

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