[article_body]
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin took aim at California gubernatorial front-runner Tom Steyer on Wednesday, accusing the Democratic candidate of fundamentally misunderstanding the role of Immigration and Customs Enforcement after Steyer pledged to abolish the agency if elected governor.
Appearing on Fox News' "The Ingraham Angle," Mullin dismissed Steyer's anti-ICE rhetoric as empty posturing. "He doesn't have the authority to do it, and he's talking on the left side of his mouth," Mullin said. "He doesn't understand ICE's role." The DHS secretary, who assumed his post roughly three weeks ago, argued that ICE simply enforces immigration laws passed by Congress and that California's own Democratic representatives could pursue legislative changes if they objected to the agency's authority.
Steyer, a billionaire investor and climate activist, has surged to the front of the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom. Recent polling places him at 21% among likely voters, ahead of Republican candidate Steve Hilton at 18%. His rise followed the abrupt exit of Eric Swalwell, who dropped his gubernatorial bid and resigned from Congress amid sexual misconduct allegations.
At a February debate, Steyer made his position blunt: "I'm very straightforward about this; ICE should be abolished. You really can't reform an organization which is absolutely wrong and criminal from top to bottom." The remarks have become a flashpoint in the broader national debate over immigration enforcement.
Steyer pushed back in a statement to Fox News Digital, placing the blame squarely on the White House. "Donald Trump has turned ICE into a criminal enterprise, so we will treat them like one," he wrote. "If they break the law in California, they will be prosecuted — just like anyone else."
The exchange underscores the widening rift between the Trump administration and California's political establishment. Mullin reaffirmed the administration's commitment to aggressive deportation efforts and defended ICE agents as professionals protecting the public. For voters in California's competitive gubernatorial contest, immigration enforcement is shaping up as a defining issue heading into the primary.
