Watch: Johnson dodges questions about ICE and civil liberties

Do federal law enforcement agencies deployed to US cities as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration need to make changes to protect civil liberties?

Watch the clip in the video player above.

PBS News’ Lisa Desjardins posed that question to House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Los Angeles, during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday morning.

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While Johnson did not directly answer her question, he said he has “great faith and confidence in the leadership” at DHS, specifically Tom Homan, the president’s “border czar.”

“We all believe that immigration policy needs to be balanced, strategic and smart, and obviously it needs to adhere to the law,” Johnson said. “I’ll leave it to the experts to determine what this is.”

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Johnson’s comments came before the House narrowly approved legislation Tuesday afternoon to end the partial government shutdown, sending the package to President Donald Trump for his signature or veto.

The agreement complements Congress’ work on 11 of 12 appropriations bills, funding most of the government through September 30. Lawmakers also passed a short-term spending patch for the Department of Homeland Security after Democrats called for immigration enforcement reforms and restrictions. Negotiations now begin on funding legislation that addresses those concerns.