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?”