Latest news with #JimmyGomez
Epoch Times
an hour ago
- Politics
- Epoch Times
California Representatives Seek to Curb Federal Surveillance Drone Powers
U.S. Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) has introduced a bill to restrict federal law enforcement's deployment of military drones for the purpose of recording public demonstrations. The bill, HR 4759, comes after reports that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) used reconnaissance drones similar to the Predator drones used in the military to monitor recent protests against immigration enforcement operations in downtown Los Angeles.
Daily Mail
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Appalling secret of illegal cannabis farmer who Democrats called a 'strawberry farmer' during dystopian ICE raid
More than 300 illegal aliens were detained in a dystopian ICE raid at a California cannabis farm - and one of them has been identified as a child predator. Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection Rodney Scott confirmed one of the illegal farmers was previously sentenced for child sex crimes and worked at the same farm as juveniles. 'This illegal alien was apprehended at the CA marijuana facility,' he said of the unnamed man. 'Turns out he had been sentenced to 7 yrs for kidnapping & attempted rape, w/ a prior conviction for attempted child molestation. 'And this felon was working at the same farm as 10 kids - one being 14 yrs old.' Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers carried out multiple raids Thursday across Ventura County, just north of Los Angeles, on cannabis farms leading to a violent response from locals and farmworkers at Glass House Farms. The raids sparked backlash from Democrats, including Governor Gavin Newsom and Democrat Congressman Jimmy Gomez, who suggested workers were 'picking strawberries' in the fields. 'Kids running from tear gas, crying on the phone because their mother was just taken from the fields,' Newsom posted on X alongside a clip of the smoky aftermath of the fracas. The raids sparked backlash from Democrats, including Governor Gavin Newsom and Democrat Congressman Jimmy Gomez, who suggested children were 'picking strawberries' in the fields 'Trump calls me "Nuwscum" - but he's the real scum,' the two-term governor added. Gomez also took to the platform to share his frustration with Trump 'targeting the immigrant farm workers who feed America.' 'How many MS-13 gang members are waking up at 3 a.m. to pick strawberries? O'yeah, zero!,' he wrote. 'Trump said he'd go after 'bad hombres," but he's targeting the immigrant farm workers who feed America. Either he lied - or he can't tell the difference.' Homeland Security then used Gomez's 'strawberry fields' claim against him, as the agency posted images of ICE agents taking a walk through the facility that was clearly lined with marijuana plants. 'Chat, what type of strawberries are these?,' the agency wrote as masked agents walked past the greenery. Marijuana is legal in the Golden State for people 21 years or older. Tear gas and guns were seen being used in dramatic video footage of the raids as armored federal agents stood on farm roads, flanked by rows of what appear to be cannabis, or marijuana plants, while masked agitators hurled slurs and debris at law enforcement. One man even opened fire on the federal agents. Just seconds after ICE agents fired smoke canisters into a crowd of demonstrators near Laguna Road, one individual could be clearly seen raising a firearm and appeared to discharge it in the agents' direction. Agents blocked off roads and stormed the facility in what witnesses described as a sudden and aggressive operation. Tear gas choked the air, smoke bombs were thrown and projectiles flew. Protesters, farmworkers, and family members scattered through the fields, many screaming, some hit, with others pouring milk over their faces to soothe burning eyes. At least three people were taken to the hospital while dozens more were detained. A worker, James Alanís died after he climbed a 30-foot greenhouse during the raid before falling from it. Alanís suffered a broken neck and skull, a family member told ABC 7. He was taken to the hospital and was on life support on Friday. He died on Saturday. Alanís was working at the cannabis farm in Ventura County to send money home to his wife and daughter in Mexico. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that 319 illegal migrants were arrested during the raid. Noem, also known as 'ICE Barbie', said 14 children were also rescued 'from potential forced labor, exploitation, and trafficking.' The children, who Scott posted an image of, are from Mexico and Honduras, Fox News reported. Authorities are currently looking into the criminal histories of detained illegal aliens and Glass House Farms is under investigation for possible child labor law violations, per the outlet. An angry Trump called out the protestors on his Truth Social platform, and went on to authorize ICE officers to take all necessary precautions to protect themselves in the future. 'I am on my way back from Texas, and watched in disbelief as THUGS were violently throwing rocks and bricks at ICE Officers while they were moving down a roadway in their car and/or official vehicle,' he said after visiting the ravaged Lone Star State with First Lady Melania following the disastrous floods. 'Tremendous damage was done to these brand new vehicles. I know for a fact that these Officers are having a hard time with allowing this to happen in that it shows such total disrespect for LAW AND ORDER. He continued: 'I am giving Total Authorization for ICE to protect itself, just like they protect the Public. I never want to see a car carrying a Law Enforcement Officer attacked again! 'AUTHORIZATION IMMEDIATELY GRANTED FOR ARREST AND INCARCERATION. Thank you for your attention to this matter!' The raid is believed to be the second-largest single-state ICE operation in history, following the 2019 Mississippi chicken plant raids that nabbed nearly 700 illegal migrants during Trump's first term.
Daily Mail
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Democrats including Gavin Newsom suggest migrant cannabis farm workers caught up in violent ICE raids were 'kids picking strawberries'
California Gov. is under fire for posting a shocking response to ICE raids, likening the workers at the targeted cannabis farms to 'kids' whose mothers have been taken from them. At multiple locations across southern California's Ventura County, just north of Los Angeles, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out raids on cannabis farms leading to a violent response from locals and farmworkers. Videos of the operations at Glass House Farms show armored federal agents standing on farm roads and flanked by rows of what appear to be cannabis, or marijuana plants, while masked agitators hurled slurs and debris at law enforcement. When the stand-off became too volatile, the National Guard and ICE agents popped tear gas which sent the crowds running in a frenzy. One man even opened up fired upon the federal agents. But Democrats including Newsom and Rep. Jimmy Gomez immediately shared sympathy for the targets on social media. Newsom posted on X: 'kids running from tear gas, crying on the phone because their mother was just taken from the fields,' Newsom posted on X alongside a clip of the smokey aftermath of the fracas. Newsom posted on X: 'ids running from tear gas, crying on the phone because their mother was just taken from the fields,' Newsom posted on X alongside a clip of the smokey aftermath of the fracas. 'Trump calls me 'Newscum' — but he's the real scum,' the two-term governor added. The governor was widely criticized for his comment. 'Democrats are having a fit because we're enforcing our laws against people working at a weed farm,' Vice President JD Vance wrote. 'Why are you allowing small children to work in a drug farm?' commentator and LA native Peachy Keenan responded to Newsom. 'Not too late to delete this,' political strategist and '10 Minute Drill' host Matt Whitlock wrote. In a statement to the Daily Mail DHS confirmed eight children were rescued as a result of the raid. 'At the California marijuana facility, ICE and CBP law enforcement rescued 8 unaccompanied migrant children from what looks like exploitation, violation of child labor laws and potentially human trafficking or smuggling,' a DHS spokesman said. 'Yet, Gavin Newsom, Ruben Gallego and other politicians continue to demonize and attack the law enforcement officers who bravely rescued these children.' Stunningly, Newsom was not the only Democrat to provide political cover for the violence that broke out at the ICE raid. Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., wrongly claimed the facility was not for cannabis production. 'Instead of prioritizing dangerous criminals Trump is targeting families that have been here for years picking our food,' he wrote, reposting the same video as Newsom and Gomez. 'The public outcry and protests are occurring because the American public knows this is wrong.' Similarly, California Democratic Rep. Jimmy Gomez bizarrely - and wrongly - insinuated that the cannabis operation was actually a berry farm. 'How many MS-13 gang members are waking up at 3 a.m. to pick strawberries? O'yeah, zero!' the Democrat oddly claimed. 'Trump said he'd go after 'bad hombres,' but he's targeting the immigrant farm workers who feed America. Either he lied — or he can't tell the difference.' Gomez was apparently unable to discern the difference between a drug and berry farm. 'Just actively dishonest to keep pushing this narrative when it's been widely reported since this afternoon that this is a criminal warrant being served at a cannabis farm - not 'farm workers who feed America,"' Fox News' Bill Melugin said, calling out Gomez for lying. 'There is no food being grown here. No strawberries either.' The offices for Senator Gallego and Rep. Gomez did not respond to the Daily Mail's request for comment. 'Glass House Farms were visited today by ICE Officials,' the company wrote in a statement on X. 'The company fully complied with agent search warrants and will provide further updates if necessary.' Its unclear how many arrests were made, but DHS released a statement indicating it was carrying out operations on individuals with criminal warrants.
Los Angeles Times
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Central Coast pot operation becomes site of massive immigration spectacle
Camarillo, Calif. — A massive show of federal law enforcement agents swept through rural corners of Ventura and Santa Barbara counties this week in the largest of the Trump administration's weeks-long campaign against undocumented immigrants in California — and the deadliest. Farmworker advocates said Friday afternoon that one laborer had died from injuries sustained after falling from the roof of a greenhouse at Glass House cannabis operation while trying to escape federal agents — the first death as a result of an immigration sweep. The raid by agents from Homeland Security Investigations, the California National Guard and the Drug Enforcement Administration, among others, has placed a spotlight on the well-known cannabis company, which has become central to the local economy. The operation began when immigration agents surrounded large greenhouse facilities in Camarillo and Carpinteria Thursday and, after presenting warrants, began entering buildings. The result was hours of chaos, particularly at the company's Camarillo outpost. As people screamed 'La migra! La migra!' workers began to run in a panic, hiding in refrigerators, containers, car trunks and on the greenhouse roofs. Protesters massed at the gates, squaring off against agents, who deployed tear gas and less-lethal bullets. Once the gas had cleared and the riot police and hundreds of protesters had gone home, nearly 200 people, including several minors, had been detained, according to the Department of Homeland Security. 'At least 10 migrant children were rescued from potential exploitation, forced labor, and human trafficking,' the agency said in a statement. 'Federal officers also arrested approximately 200 illegal aliens.' In addition, the FBI said it was investigating a possible shooting that had taken place amid the hurly-burly of protests outside the gates of Glass House, one of the largest legal cannabis operations in the state. The incident, with its images of children running through fields to escape clouds of tear gas and workers hiding in terror amid panes of broken glass on greenhouse roofs catapulted across social media, and quickly fueled dueling political narratives. The Trump administration portrayed the events as an action against 'a marijuana grow operation' that, as a Border Patrol official put it in a post on X, 'hires illegal aliens and exploits unaccompanied minors.' The White House account on X joined the fray, calling out Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Los Angeles) for defending farmworkers doing their jobs. 'That ain't produce, holmes. THAT's PRODUCT,' the White House post read. Local elected officials and farmworker advocates, meanwhile, decried the action against a legal and highly regulated operation. 'It was disproportionate, overkill,' said Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Santa Barbara). The United Farm Workers, in a statement, said: 'These violent and cruel federal actions terrorize American communities, disrupt the American food supply chain, threaten lives and separate families. There is no city, state or federal district where it is legal to terrorize and detain people for being brown and working in agriculture. These raids must stop immediately.' The operation also put a spotlight on Glass House, one of the largest legal cannabis operations in California. The company, which counts among its founders a former Torrance police officer, has in recent years become the largest taxpayer in Ventura County and one of the area's largest employers. It has become a big player in local politics, but now, apparently, it is in the crosshairs of the Trump administration. Company officials have said little publicly, posting on X Friday that two of its operations, one in Camarillo in Ventura County and one near Carpinteria in Santa Barbara County, had granted agents entry after being presented with a search warrant. 'Workers were detained and we are assisting to provide them legal representation,' the company said in a statement, adding that it 'has never knowingly violated applicable hiring practice.' Glass House occupies a controversial position in California's rough-and-tumble legal cannabis industry. Five years ago, the company bought up old vegetable and flower greenhouses across the farmland south of Santa Barbara. Its growth happened at such a large scale and at such a low production cost that many in the industry refer to it as the 'Walmart of Weed.' The converted greenhouses at the 165-acre Camarillo site once grew cucumbers, a nod to the pattern of repurposing distressed properties employed by co-founder Kyle Kazan, a former Torrance police officer once assigned to gang detail who made his first millions building a property management empire of Orange County beach rentals. Glass House began as a single greenhouse operation in Santa Barbara, and after a 2021 merger with a Canadian company that allowed public trading of Glass House Brands stock, established its mammoth footprint in Ventura County. Under Kazan, Glass House has weathered allegations brought by competitors of dumping cannabis products illegally in other states. Kazan, while not heavily engaged in national political battles beyond cannabis, has been a proponent of pardons for those serving long prison sentences for nonviolent drug crimes. In a May investor presentation, Kazan praised Trump's appointee for pardon advisor. The company also sparked a firestorm in 2019 when it donated $189,000 to the Carpinteria School District — and then got school board members to pose for a photo wearing company merchandise amid cannabis plants. At the time, many residents decried the growing influence of marijuana businesses on local politics and culture, while others defended Glass House and other operations for providing jobs and local tax revenue. Court filings show many of Glass House's employees actually work for a Camarillo labor contractor. The company faces allegations of labor law violations — including failure to pay overtime or give meal breaks — and separate sexual harassment and discrimination complaints filed by workers paid $16 an hour (minimum wage at the time) to sweep plant trimmings, handle coconut fiber mulch and tend to other duties. The company disputes the charges, levied in Ventura County civil lawsuits, which are still pending in court. Numerous Trump administration officials called out the presence of undocumented minors working at the facility on Thursday. Customs and Border Patrol Commissioner Rodney Scott posted a photograph on X of young men with their faces blurred. 'These are the juveniles found in the marijuana facility — almost all unaccompanied, one as young as 14,' the post read. 'California are you ready to partner with us to stop child exploitation?' In its statement, Glass House said it 'does not and has never employed minors.' It also said it did not expect the raid to 'affect operations moving forward' and would 'provide additional details when applicable.' On Friday morning, the scene outside the company's Camarillo complex was much calmer than it had been the day before. The operation is surrounded by a metal fence with green tarp; signs warn that the fence is charged with 7,000 volts. Many who were there were trying to recover cars left behind by workers detained in the raid. Others said they believed some workers might still be hiding in the sprawling complex. Irma Perez said her nephew, Fidel Buscio, 24, had been working at the facility and then hid on the roof before later being detained. Before he was taken, she said, he sent her videos, including one in which he stands on the roof with blood on his shirt from an injury sustained from scrambling over broken glass. Perez said Buscio had lived with his wife in Tijuana but come to Ventura County after she became sick. She said he is undocumented and trying to obtain legal status. She said her last communication from him was a call in which he said: 'They got me.' She was trying to pick up his car; his attorney, she added, does not know where Buscio was taken. Two daughters of a detained worker were there Friday as well, trying to pick up their mother's car. The 19- and 20-year-old did not want to be named to protect their family's privacy, but they said their mother told them that she chose not to run when immigration agents entered the complex. She has already signed self-deportation papers to go to Mexico and avoid being held in a detention center in another state, they said. 'It's really sad,' one daughter said. 'They're leaving a lot of people without parents.' Another worker, who is undocumented and did not want to be named, said he hid beneath the cannabis plants for 11 hours. It was hot, more than 100 degrees. He said he could hear the sound of others being detained, and he stayed hidden until about midnight, when he finally crept out and escaped. Griselda Reyes Basurto, program manager at the Mixteco Indigena Community Organizing Project which works with many of the area's Indigenous workers, said she was able to access Glass House early Friday morning to look for anyone left behind. She said they didn't find anyone but they saw remnants of the raid: a pair of shoes, broken glass, trails of blood. Car windows were shattered, she said, a sign that people tried to hide in their cars but agents broke in anyway. She said she is coordinating with families of those taken to make sure they're able to receive their final paychecks. Thursday was payday. The raid has terrified the immigrant populations who work in the area's farms and the executives who run California's cannabis operation. Activists shared images of DEA agents at the Camarillo immigration raid and worried that it signaled an end to the federal ceasefire against cannabis. While most states have laws that make cannabis cultivation, sales and use legal in some fashion, it remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law, alongside heroin and LSD. 'DOJ knows cannabis farms are easy targets because they violate federal law, and ICE can roll with the other three-letter agencies to do a raid,' said an executive at one of California's largest cannabis operations, who did not want to be named for fear of worsening the situation. Americans for Safe Access and the California Cannabis Industry Assn. held an emergency call Friday to prepare for more such federal actions. 'We have real enemies in Washington who are now in power,' said Steph Sherer, president of Americans for Safe Access. The Glass House raid targeted people, not plants, but 'let's be clear, this was a warning shot and we've got to be prepared for both,' said Caren Woodson, chief executive of the Cannabis Industry Assn. 'Just because it wasn't plants this time doesn't mean it won't be next time.' Some of the sense of vulnerability rises from memories of Trump's first term, when then-Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions in 2018 rolled back a Department of Justice memorandum that dissuaded federal prosecution of cannabis laws in states where the plant is licensed and regulated. The threat of enforcement of federal laws criminalizing cannabis carries big risks for cannabis operators. In federal court, state legalization is not an allowed defense. Moreover, Trump's DEA has failed to act on recommendations to reduce federal prohibitions against cannabis. 'This is real. We've all lived through it, and it is happening again,' Sherer said.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
White House mocks House Democrat for criticizing ICE raid at marijuana farm
The White House mocked Rep. Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.) in a social media post Friday, after the lawmaker criticized a federal immigration raid on a large cannabis farm in Southern California. The official White House account on social platform X posted a digitally altered photograph of Gomez crying and labeled him 'cryin' Jimmy.' 'ICE: Raids marijuana farms filled with illegal aliens,' the post reads. 'Cryin' Jimmy: 'ThEy'Re JuSt StRaWbErRy PiCkErS,'' it added, mock quoting the Golden State Democrat. The White House continued, 'That ain't produce, holmes. THAT'S PRODUCT.' Gomez had accused President Trump of lying about only going after criminals in the administration's deportation raid. The president earlier this week said he would not provide an 'amnesty' program that would offer help to farms and migrant farmworkers, but he did announce a new program intended to support the agriculture industry. 'How many MS-13 gang members are waking up at 3 a.m. to pick strawberries? O'yeah, zero!' the lawmaker wrote Friday on X. 'Trump said he'd go after 'bad hombres,' but he's targeting the immigrant farm workers who feed America. Either he lied — or he can't tell the difference.' Immigration agents and National Guard members carried out the raids and arrested dozens of people, including minors it said are undocumented, according to KTLA, which also shared a video of protesters and apparent targets of the raid running from tear gas sprayed by officers in Camarillo, Calif. Vice President Vance and other officials also piled on, railing against Gomez over his comment. 'Democrats are having a fit because we're enforcing our laws against people working at a weed farm,' Vance posted online in a reply to the lawmaker's post. White House Communications Director Steven Cheung also shared Gomez's post and suggested he was 'getting high.' 'Jimmy Gomez must be getting high off that Strawberry Kush because this is a weed farm found to have exploited juveniles here illegally,' Cheung wrote on X. Following the raid, Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott said 10 minors in the country illegally were found at the facility, which he said is 'now under investigation for child labor violations.' The cannabis company said on social media that it complied with federal search warrants but denied employing minors, adding it 'has never knowingly violated applicable hiring practices.' California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Thursday called Trump 'the real scum' in response to the raids and shared a video from KTLA of the clashes with protesters. The Trump administration also hit back at him, with the account for the Department of Homeland Security replying to his post, 'Why are there children working at a marijuana facility, Gavin?' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
