DORAL, Fla.—At a key House GOP conference, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) suggested that other countries might do well to follow Colombia’s example of sending their presidential planes to pick up illegal aliens detained in the United States.
“We were happy to send them back,” Johnson told reporters on Jan. 27 at the Trump National Doral Miami, where House Republicans are meeting to discuss a reconciliation package along with other priorities.
The speaker’s message followed a brief but intense exchange between the government of Colombia and the United States over the return of Colombian deportees the United States sought to fly back to their home country.
After Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Colombia had suspended an authorization for a deportation flight, Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on X that he “never refused to accept migrants,” separately complaining of the mistreatment of illegal aliens being repatriated by the United States.
“In civilian planes, without being treated like criminals, we will receive our fellow citizens,” Petro said.
President Donald Trump threatened to impose 25 percent tariffs and sanctions on Colombia unless the country agreed to accept the deportee flights, sparking talk of retaliatory tariffs from Colombia’s president.
Later that day, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt issued a White House statement indicating that Colombia had complied with American demands, adding that proposed tariffs and sanctions “will be held in reserve, and not signed, unless Colombia fails to honor this agreement.”
“Today’s events make clear to the world that America is respected again,” she said.
Colombian Foreign Minister Gilberto Murillo confirmed that an agreement had been reached, stating that his country’s presidential plane is “ready to facilitate the return of Colombians who were going to arrive in the country this morning on deportation flights.”
Johnson, key to a Republican trifecta, characterized the interaction between the two countries’ leaders as a clear example of U.S. success.
“When the president engaged with the president of Colombia about the situation there, Colombia did an about-face,” he said.
Johnson said the Congress would continue to stand by the president on illegal immigration, delivering a message to countries now tasked with accepting their citizens who were unlawfully present in the United States and are being repatriated.
“You have to take back your illegals who came here, that came from your country, and if not, then we will act, and we will engage with sanctions or any other measures that are appropriate to back up the president’s agenda. That’s what the American people demand,” he said.
Johnson also spoke about aid for California, a hot-button issue after Trump said strings could be attached to it. Trump said the state would need to change its water management practices and voter ID policy. Local governments in California are not allowed to ask voters for ID at the polls.
When asked if wildfire aid would depend on a change in how California handles voter ID, Johnson said, “We’ve got to work out the details on that. I have not spoken to the president about that issue.”
He said it would be discussed during a subsequent dinner at Trump National Doral Miami. The first day of the retreat included a speech from the president.
Additionally, Johnson spoke about the Federal Emergency Management Authority (FEMA), which came under fire after Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina and other parts of Appalachia in late September 2024.
Trump told reporters in Fletcher, North Carolina, on Jan. 24 that the agency might be eliminated.
At the Jan. 27 press conference, Johnson cited his own experience with FEMA as a representative from Louisiana, a disaster-prone state. Twenty years ago, the agency’s conduct after Hurricane Katrina drove calls for reform.
“It is very often the case that local workers, people that were working through FEMA, do a pretty good job, but often it’s the leadership at the top that can affect the outcome of how a disaster is handled,” he said.
He said the president’s FEMA council is “long overdue” and that House Republicans would aid the effort as necessary.
Democrats in the House voiced strong opposition in a letter, stating that the firings “violate the law, attack our democracy, and undermine the safety of the American people.”
Johnson defended Trump’s actions, saying inspectors general were key to identifying government mismanagement, in line with what he said were crucial GOP objectives.
“I think maybe some new eyes, new voices would be appropriate,” he said.
