Chris Clem, former HHS adviser and retired chief border patrol agent, joined Chicago’s Morning Answer to react to a new survey showing that a significant number of Illinois Democrats believe violence against ICE officers can be justified. Clem said the findings highlight a growing tolerance for lawlessness that stems from political leaders and activist rhetoric portraying immigration enforcement as the enemy rather than as protectors of public safety.
Host Dan Proft cited a RealClearPolitics analysis showing that 42 percent of Illinois Democrats think violence to stop ICE is at least sometimes acceptable, and that majorities support physically obstructing officers or blocking access to federal facilities. Clem said such numbers reflect “the underbelly” of the modern progressive movement, which he described as rationalizing criminal behavior in the name of ideology.
Clem defended ICE commander Greg Bavino, who was criticized by Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson and reprimanded in court for deploying non-lethal munitions while dispersing a crowd. Johnson called Bavino a “barbarian,” prompting Clem to call the mayor’s comments cowardly and insulting to law enforcement. He said Bavino was leading his team through a volatile situation and using appropriate tactics to protect both officers and bystanders.
Clem argued that activists and sympathetic judges are undermining the ability of federal officers to enforce immigration law. He criticized the federal judge overseeing Bavino’s case—an Obama appointee—for inserting the court into tactical decisions that should remain within the agency. “She can’t tell agents how to protect themselves,” he said, warning that such interference threatens officer safety.
Asked whether ICE officers should ever face accountability for excessive force, Clem said that law enforcement already holds itself to high standards. “We police our own,” he said, adding that federal agents routinely review and discipline misconduct when it occurs. What’s missing, he said, is balance in the media narrative, since the public rarely sees what happens before incidents of crowd control.
Proft noted that the Chicago media continues to focus on ICE operations rather than on the rising number of crimes committed by migrants released under Illinois’s sanctuary policies. Clem agreed, saying that violent crimes—including sexual assaults and attacks by repeat offenders—should be the real story. “To blame ICE for Chicago’s chaos while ignoring these cases is absurd,” he said. “The agents are doing their jobs; the problem is the politicians who tie their hands.”
Clem concluded that demonizing ICE officers emboldens lawlessness and erodes respect for the rule of law. “When leaders tell people that enforcement officers are the enemy, it gives radicals permission to act violently,” he said. “That’s not protest—that’s assault—and it’s time to call it what it is.”