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More information coming out at DHS and who may be running things or at least the ICE operations.. Not a person who should be in the position he is..
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/27/u...smid=url-share
From Day 1, he was Donald Trump’s pit bull.
Corey Lewandowski was a hard-charging political operative who worked for a group backed by the Koch brothers when Mr. Trump put him in charge of a nascent White House campaign with only a handful of staff members in 2015. Untested at the presidential level, he led with a simple mantra: “Let Trump be Trump.”
With an attack-and-never-apologize style that mirrored his boss’s, Mr. Lewandowski could almost always count on Mr. Trump’s eventual support over the next decade, as he ping-ponged from government to lobbying and back again with several scandals in his wake.
Now back as a top adviser to Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, he finds himself at the center of the uproar over the immigration crackdown in Minnesota, where two American citizens have been killed by federal agents in the past month.
Corey Lewandowski was a hard-charging political operative who worked for a group backed by the Koch brothers when Mr. Trump put him in charge of a nascent White House campaign with only a handful of staff members in 2015. Untested at the presidential level, he led with a simple mantra: “Let Trump be Trump.”
With an attack-and-never-apologize style that mirrored his boss’s, Mr. Lewandowski could almost always count on Mr. Trump’s eventual support over the next decade, as he ping-ponged from government to lobbying and back again with several scandals in his wake.
Now back as a top adviser to Kristi Noem, the homeland security secretary, he finds himself at the center of the uproar over the immigration crackdown in Minnesota, where two American citizens have been killed by federal agents in the past month.
He looms as a significant figure inside the Department of Homeland Security, where he has been serving as a “special government employee” despite questions about whether he has exceeded the limit of 130 days a year for such workers.
Ms. Noem’s decision to empower Mr. Lewandowski has frustrated some in the agency and at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is part of the homeland security department. One D.H.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said that Mr. Lewandowski was known as someone willing to fire anyone perceived as getting in his way. At times, this official said, he has mused about which officials were stalling certain priorities and whether they should be fired.
A U.S. official said that directions at ICE were coming from Mr. Lewandowski and that nothing got done at the agency without his blessing. At times, this person said, Mr. Lewandowski yelled at ICE leaders as the pressure to meet Mr. Trump’s mass deportation goals increased last year.
Mr. Lewandowski has also been present at pivotal moments for Ms. Noem and the department, including speeches and controversial episodes. He was at the news conference in Los Angeles last year when Senator Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California, was forcibly removed and handcuffed after he tried to talk to Ms. Noem.
Ms. Noem’s decision to empower Mr. Lewandowski has frustrated some in the agency and at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which is part of the homeland security department. One D.H.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said that Mr. Lewandowski was known as someone willing to fire anyone perceived as getting in his way. At times, this official said, he has mused about which officials were stalling certain priorities and whether they should be fired.
A U.S. official said that directions at ICE were coming from Mr. Lewandowski and that nothing got done at the agency without his blessing. At times, this person said, Mr. Lewandowski yelled at ICE leaders as the pressure to meet Mr. Trump’s mass deportation goals increased last year.
Mr. Lewandowski has also been present at pivotal moments for Ms. Noem and the department, including speeches and controversial episodes. He was at the news conference in Los Angeles last year when Senator Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California, was forcibly removed and handcuffed after he tried to talk to Ms. Noem.
But his antipathy toward the news media took a darker turn in March 2016, when he grabbed a reporter for Breitbart News, Michelle Fields, who posted a picture of bruising on her arm. He was charged with battery but the charges were later dropped.
The episode would be an early preview of how both Mr. Trump and Mr. Lewandowski tended to respond to controversy. At first, they denied the accusations and suggested Ms. Fields was lying, with Mr. Lewandowski calling her “delusional.”
Even after video emerged of Mr. Lewandowski grabbing Ms. Fields, the two men continued to dispute what happened. “If you look at her, in my book and according to a lot of people, she’s grabbing at me, and he’s acting as an intermediary and trying to block her from doing that,” Mr. Trump said at the time.
Asked whether he might fire Mr. Lewandowski over the incident, Mr. Trump was blunt.
“I don’t discard people,” he said.
The episode would be an early preview of how both Mr. Trump and Mr. Lewandowski tended to respond to controversy. At first, they denied the accusations and suggested Ms. Fields was lying, with Mr. Lewandowski calling her “delusional.”
Even after video emerged of Mr. Lewandowski grabbing Ms. Fields, the two men continued to dispute what happened. “If you look at her, in my book and according to a lot of people, she’s grabbing at me, and he’s acting as an intermediary and trying to block her from doing that,” Mr. Trump said at the time.
Asked whether he might fire Mr. Lewandowski over the incident, Mr. Trump was blunt.
“I don’t discard people,” he said.
Then, in 2021, a Republican donor accused Mr. Lewandowski of making unwanted sexual advances and touching her inappropriately at a dinner in Las Vegas, saying he had grown aggressive and thrown a drink at her when she made clear she was rebuffing him. He was soon removed from his role overseeing a super PAC backing Mr. Trump.
Trump aides insisted at the time that this episode was different, and that Mr. Trump would distance himself from Mr. Lewandowski.
But during the 2024 campaign, Mr. Lewandowski was back in the fold, hired as an adviser to the Trump campaign with vague responsibilities. Aides suggested that Mr. Trump found comfort in Mr. Lewandowski’s presence — no matter his history, his volatility or his penchant for controversy — because he was an original believer that Mr. Trump could become president.
“I just like him,” Mr. Trump told Olivia Nuzzi of New York magazine in 2024. “Corey’s a character.”
Trump aides insisted at the time that this episode was different, and that Mr. Trump would distance himself from Mr. Lewandowski.
But during the 2024 campaign, Mr. Lewandowski was back in the fold, hired as an adviser to the Trump campaign with vague responsibilities. Aides suggested that Mr. Trump found comfort in Mr. Lewandowski’s presence — no matter his history, his volatility or his penchant for controversy — because he was an original believer that Mr. Trump could become president.
“I just like him,” Mr. Trump told Olivia Nuzzi of New York magazine in 2024. “Corey’s a character.”
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