Overview
- Conservative outlets amplified an October podcast exchange in late May in which Hong said the state might need to use the National Guard to arrest ICE agents if federal enforcement threatened communities.
- The quoted line came during an appearance on Resistance Radio when host Dane Snudden asked about resisting President Trump, and the remark has been circulated by right-leaning sites and commentators.
- Hong’s record includes 2020–21 social posts endorsing police ‘defund’ and ‘abolish’ rhetoric and legislation she introduced to limit state cooperation with ICE and restrict ICE practices.
- Hong responded to the publicity with campaign statements promising to deliver public safety and saying she would not make arbitrary cuts to safety budgets, while critics including Republican officials called the comments radical.
- The controversy matters politically because a March Marquette Law School poll showed Hong leading the Democratic field with a small share of support and a large bloc of undecided voters, making newly amplified statements potentially decisive for the August primary.