Watch: Acting ICE Director Thwarts Eric Swalwell's 'Gotcha Question' During Hearing
Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell on Tuesday tried to shame acting Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director Tom Lyons into resigning from his post, but the Trump administration official deftly parried the lawmaker’s gotcha question.
During a hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee, according to Politico, Swalwell preceded his call for Lyons to resign with a litany of lies and half-truths, implying ICE agents had “dragged a woman by her hair” through the streets of Minneapolis, and that those who’ve protested ICE actions have been “shot and publicly executed.”
Renee Good and Alex Pretti were shot when they inserted themselves in the middle of ICE operations. Good used her car to plow into an officer before he shot, while Pretti was armed and actively resisting arrest when he was killed. He was the one dragging a woman in the street.
So neither Good nor Pretti was a peaceful protester, but rather agitators seeking to thwart federal officers from lawfully carrying out their duty to remove illegal aliens.
After laying out his fake ICE accusations, Swalwell said to Lyons, “Considering your honorable service in the past, and the dishonorable acts that those who have worked for you have conducted, and the disgraceful statement that the leadership above you have said, you now have a decision. Will you stand with the kids who you’re supposed to protect, or will you side with the killers bringing terror to our streets?”
Swalwell had a picture of Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old held by federal immigration officials last month, during an operation to apprehend his father.
“Mr. Lyons, will you resign from ICE?” the congressman asked.
With a picture of Liam Ramos, Rep. Swalwell asks Acting ICE Director Lyons if he will resign:
“No sir, I won’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because that child you’re showing right there, the men and women of ICE took care of him when his father abandoned him and ran from law enforcement.” pic.twitter.com/X16GvUW07L
— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) February 10, 2026
“No, sir, I won’t,” Lyons answered.
“Why not?” Swalwell followed up.
“Because that child you’re showing — ICE took care of him when his father abandoned him,” Lyons answered.
“He never should have gone into custody,” Swalwell said.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, explained the circumstances that resulted in ICE agents temporarily caring for Ramos.
“The facts are actually that this little boy was abandoned by his own father. His own father was being approached by ICE agents when he darted, ran, and abandoned the child,” she said.
“Our law enforcement in these frigid temperatures stayed with the child, tried to bring him into custody with the mother, who would actually not take the child into custody, which is so sad,” McLaughlin said.
🚨 BREAKING: ICE agents took that 5-year-old boy in Minnesota to MCDONALD’S, and “played his favorite music to comfort him”
The Fake News said he was “DETAINED” by ICE.
The reality is he was abandoned and SAVED by ICE.
YOU CAN’T HATE THEM ENOUGH! Good on these ICE agents! 👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/tBBBPnc3T2
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 23, 2026
Ramos and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, were sent to Texas, but arrived back in Minneapolis last week after a federal judge ordered their release. Arias, a native of Ecuador, crossed illegally into the United States during President Joe Biden’s administration.
Swalwell is part of the problem by helping fuel the leftists’ anti-ICE insurgency in Minnesota, probably in an attempt to raise his profile in the crowded Democratic field to become California’s next governor.
Lyons responded with professionalism and truth, while Swalwell showed himself once again an unserious person.
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