Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem dodged multiple questions on Sunday about whether women and children set for deportation could be housed at Guantanamo Bay.
In an interview on NBC’s Meet The Press Noem told moderator Kristen Welker that the Trump administration is targeting the worst criminals for deportation.
However, she refused to say outright that women and children arrested in Trump’s mass deportation raids will not be held at Guantanamo Bay—the U.S. naval base in Cuba best known four housing terrorists in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
“Could women, children, and families be held there at Guantanamo?” Welker asked.
“If you look at what we are doing today, it’s targeting the worst of the worst, we’ve been very clear on that,” Noem answered. “The priority of this president is to go after criminal aliens that are making our streets more dangerous.”
“After that, we have final removal orders on many individuals in this country, they are the next priority, and we’ll continue to work through people that are breaking the law, that are in danger to these communities, and use the detention centers that we have set up in order to facilitate this in an orderly way,” she added.
Asked again whether she could rule out housing women and children at Guantanamo Bay, Noem dodged the question again.
“We’re going to use the facilities that we have, and I think you’re well aware we have other detention facilities, other places in the country, so we will utilize what we have according to what’s appropriate for the individuals,” she said.
