NEWYou can now listen to PK Press Club articles!
Mark Teixeira, a World Series champion with the New York Yankees and a congressional candidate in Texas, came to the defense of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents after officials said agitators were creating “AI videos to stoke hatred.”
The Department of Homeland Security wrote on social media that “anti-ICE radicals” were working to “demonize American law enforcement.”
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PK Press Club
New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira during batting practice before the Toronto Blue Jays game at Rogers Center on May 31, 2016. (Nick Turchiaro/USA Today Sports)
“We must defend ICE officers and law enforcement against these dangerous threats,” the former MLB first baseman wrote in an article on X.
DHS has warned that AI videos shared online cause more harm.
“The REALITY: These disgusting smears and lies are fueling the 1,000% increase in assaults and nearly 8,000% increase in death threats against our courageous @ICEgov officers,” the agency said.
“The SICKOS spreading this filth need to stop before they kill anyone.”
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons warned in July that AI technology could lead to security risks for agents.
TRUMP ADMINISTRATOR SUES CALIFORNIA LAW BANS ICE FROM WEARING FACE MASKS TO PROTECT IDENTITIES
New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira in the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on May 18, 2016. (Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports)
“If legislation is passed to try to unmask ICE agents, they’re not allowed to wear them, that runs the risk of agitators, different groups, you know, these fringe organizations using reverse technology, AI, to try to deceive their families, to try to get their identity, their home address,” Lyons told PK Press Club Digital at the time. “We’ve heard from elected officials that there should be no rest for ICE agents or their families.
“So they’re really concerned about that. They’re also concerned about their own well-being when they’re going to make these arrests, because now we have to send more officers into the communities, because where we might send four or five in the past, we have to send up to eight or ten just to protect the four that make the arrest of an individual.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents escort a detained immigrant into an elevator after he leaves an immigration courtroom, June 17, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Olga Fedorova, file)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PK Press Club APP
Teixeira launched his campaign for Texas’ 21st Congressional District in August. This followed Rep. Chip Roy’s decision not to run again.
