WASHINGTON—There is “no tangible plan” for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to be at Super Bowl LX, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Oct. 3 during a White House press briefing.
“As far as ICE being at the Super Bowl, as far as I’m aware, there’s no tangible plan for that in store right now,” Leavitt said.
“However, of course, this administration is always going to arrest and deport illegal immigrants when we find them.”
“There is nowhere you can provide a safe haven to people who are in this country illegally,” Lewandowski told podcaster Benny Johnson.
“Not the Super Bowl and nowhere else. We will find you and apprehend you and put you in a detention facility and deport you.
“So know that is a very real situation under this administration, which is contrary to how it used to be.”
Leavitt’s remarks were in response to a question about whether President Donald Trump had any reaction to rapper Bad Bunny being named the halftime performer at Super Bowl LX, which will be held on Feb. 8, 2026, in Santa Clara, California, the home of the San Francisco 49ers.
The press secretary said she would not get ahead of the president in his response.
Bad Bunny, whose real name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, has been an outspoken critic of ICE.
Ocasio said he did not add any cities in the mainland United States to his current tour due to the agency.
“All of [the shows] have been successful. All of them have been magnificent. I’ve enjoyed connecting with Latinos who have been living in the U.S.
“But specifically, for a residency here in Puerto Rico, when we are an unincorporated territory of the U.S. … People from the U.S. could come here to see the show.
“Latinos and Puerto Ricans of the United States could also travel here, or to any part of the world. But there was the issue of … ICE could be outside [my concert]. And it’s something that we were talking about and very concerned about.”
Lewandowski also criticized the selection of Ocasio as the halftime performer.
“We should be trying to be inclusive, not exclusive. There are plenty of great bands and entertainment people who could be playing at that show that would be bringing people together and not separating them,” he said.
“If there are illegal aliens, I don’t care if it’s a concert for Johnny Smith or Bad Bunny or anybody else. … We’re going to do enforcement everywhere.”
Ocasio endorsed former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential race.
