Last month, a report surfaced that Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, had taken what is being characterized as a $50,000 bribe.
The report came via an FBI investigation video, but so far, Homan has not faced any corruption charges.
When Vice President JD Vance was interviewed by ABC News over the weekend by host George Stephanopoulos, the two sparred over the allegations, with the longtime media personality growing clearly disgusted and cutting away from the segment.
The report about Homan first originated on MSNBC, and it claimed that the Trump border czar was under investigation for accepting $50,000 prior to joining the Trump administration and allegedly conveying the notion that if Trump won, the “business executives” would receive favor when it came time to award government contracts.
The businessmen at issue were actually undercover FBI agents. They were waiting to see if Homan would deliver on the agreement, but the investigation was reportedly halted as soon as Trump’s new team took over the Department of Justice.
FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche recently addressed the investigation, claiming it was a deep state witch hunt that was launched by the previous administration.
They jointly stated, “This matter originated under the previous administration and was subjected to a full review by FBI agents and Justice Department prosecutors. They found no credible evidence of any criminal wrongdoing. The Department’s resources must remain focused on real threats to the American people, not baseless investigations. As a result, the investigation has been closed.”
Last week, a report in the New York Times addressed the question of whether the $50,000 was recoverable. Apparently, as the case stands, the government has no avenue through which to retrieve the money from Homan.
When Attorney General Pam Bondi was asked about the alleged bribe last week on the Hill, she responded, “The investigation of Mr. Homan was subjected to a full review by the F.B.I., agents and D.O.J. prosecutors. They found no credible evidence of any wrongdoing.”
Homan has been asked about the situation repeatedly, and at one point, he answered, “Look, I did nothing criminal. I did nothing illegal.”
There are several avenues for potentially recovering the cash, but since authorities have no idea where the money is, the matter remains complicated. One route would be for the IRS to investigate Homan, charging him for tax evasion, but that will never happen while Trump is in office. Since the statute of limitations on such a crime is five years, Homan would be able to breathe easier if a Republican wins the White House in 2028. If not, this case is likely to be number one atop any new attorney general’s to-do list.
Vance is a master at playing coy, and he did just that this weekend on ABC News when Stephanopoulos asked him about the alleged tape and bribe, responding, "I don’t know what tape you’re referring to, George. I saw media reports that Tom Homan accepted a bribe. There’s no evidence of that. And here's why fewer and fewer people watch your program and why you're losing credibility.”
The VP continued, "Because you're talking for now, five minutes with the vice president of the United States about this story regarding Tom Homan, a story that I've read about, but I don't even know the video that you're talking about."
Stephanopoulos was clearly disgusted at this point, responding, "It’s not a weird left-wing rabbit hole. I didn’t insinuate anything. I asked you whether Tom Homan accepted $50,000, as was heard on an audiotape recorded by the FBI in September 2024, and you did not answer the question. Thank you for your time this morning."
I will be the first person to admit that this scenario clearly stinks. If Homan had taken the money, the investigation should have been more transparent. On the flip side, the White House contends that Homan never took the $50,000, which is the exact opposite of what the MSNBC report claims. For me, I want something definitive either way before making a judgment. I like Homan, but if he is corrupt, he has to go down. Or, was this just another rogue operation by FBI agents to try to trap someone the previous administration knew would be involved in Trump’s second term? We may never know.
