DHS does not deny strong-arming tourist into letting them into his phone, only that agents sent him home because of a meme
The story circulating online — first in Norwegian newspaper Nordlys and then picked up by British tabloids — claims that during Mikkelsen’s encounter with the Department of Homeland Security, agents took his phone and found a meme depicting Vance as a bloated, smooth, bald man staring off into the distance.
Mikkelsen claims that the officials threatened to fine him $5,000 or send him to prison for five years if he refused to provide them with his phone password. The tourist ultimately agreed to hand over his information, allowing agents to look through his phone.
The reports picked up enough steam in headlines and on social media to justify CBP putting out a statement denying parts of the story.
Come next election cycle, there needs to be a reckoning. Not only does Trump and many of his appointees go to prison, it also needs to be investigated how so many bureaucrats and officers are so willing to do Trump’s bidding. Unless those people are removed too, Trump 2.0 is going to happen.