Trump Officials Dispute Claims That US Citizen Children Were Deported to Honduras

Officials from the Trump administration on Sunday rejected accusations that US citizen children were deported to Honduras alongside their undocumented mothers.

They asserted that the removal process followed the mothers’ wishes and did not constitute formal deportations of the children.

The controversy arose after three US citizen children—ages 2, 4, and 7—from two separate families were removed from the United States along with their mothers by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Immigration advocates and attorneys argue that the removals violated due process rights and raised broader concerns about the administration’s immigration enforcement practices.

Tom Homan, President Donald Trump’s border czar, emphasized during an appearance on CBS’s Face the Nation that no American child had been deported.

“Deported means ordered by an immigration judge,” Homan stated, arguing that the children left the country voluntarily with their mothers. “No US citizen child was deported,” he said.

Homan framed  the situation as one where the mothers opted to take their children rather than leave them behind.

Charles Kuck, an immigration attorney, challenged that characterization, asserting that the US government’s role in facilitating the children’s travel effectively amounted to deportation.

“Who paid for the ticket?” Kuck asked. “It is clear that the US government paid for this ticket — that means these children were deported.”

The removals took place after families attended routine check-ins under the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, a system that allows individuals to remain in their communities during immigration proceedings. Attorneys for the families said the mothers and children were taken into custody at their appointments, transported hours away without notice, and placed on flights to Honduras without sufficient opportunity to make alternate arrangements for the children.

Particular attention has been drawn to the case of a 4-year-old child with Stage 4 cancer, who, according to his family’s lawyer, was deported without access to necessary medications or his doctors. In another case, a 2-year-old girl was reportedly removed despite her US-citizen father’s wish for her to stay in the country.

US District Judge Terry A. Doughty, a Trump appointee, expressed concern over the situation, writing that he had a “strong suspicion that the government just deported a US citizen with no meaningful process,” and scheduled a hearing to further investigate.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking on NBC’s Meet the Press, defended the administration’s actions, stating that it was the mothers, not the children, who were deported.

“The children went with their mothers,” Rubio said.

He added that as US citizens, the children could return if a legal guardian, such as a father or another relative, assumed custody.

Critics, including the National Immigration Project, disputed the administration’s framing, arguing that ICE failed to offer viable alternatives for the children to remain in the United States. Advocacy groups claimed that the mothers were detained without communication and pressured to take their children with them under difficult circumstances.

John Sandweg, a former acting ICE director under the Obama administration, noted that previous enforcement efforts prioritized giving parents time to make decisions regarding the care of their US citizen children. The rapid removal, he said, raised concerns about proper custodial procedures.

The Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to requests for further comment.

The Washington Post, the New York Times, and Axios contributed to this report.