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White House Delivers Ultimatum To ICE: Triple The Arrests Or Face The Consequences

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Illegal Immigration in the United State via Wikimedia Commons

According to new reports, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller delivered a blunt ultimatum to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) leadership in mid-May: ramp up arrests to 3,000 per day or face personnel changes.

During a tense meeting at ICE headquarters in Washington, D.C., Miller reportedly warned that regional offices failing to meet the target would see their leadership replaced. Sources familiar with the meeting said Miller left no room for interpretation โ€” improved numbers werenโ€™t encouraged, they were mandatory. (RELATED: Legal Battle May Reveal Big Payouts Tied To Bidenโ€™s Border Policies)

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, also in attendance, struck a more measured tone. Still, the message was clear, according to NBC News: immigration enforcement efforts must intensify and take precedence:

Misdemeanor cases for border crossings are regularly appearing in federal court, a rarity in recent years. Justice Department teams focused on other issues are being disbanded, with members being dispersed to teams focused on immigration and other administration priorities.

And prosecutors say cases without immigration components have stalled or are moving more slowly, according to documents seen by NBC News and conversations with six current and former prosecutors and a senior FBI official, who described how immigration is now a central part of discussions around whether to pursue cases.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

โ€œImmigration status is now question No. 1 in terms of charging decisions,โ€ an assistant U.S. attorney said. โ€œIs this person a documented immigrant? Is this person an undocumented immigrant? Is this person a citizen? Are they somehow deportable? What is their immigration status? And the answer to that question is now largely driving our charging decisions.โ€

At least one U.S. attorneyโ€™s office abandoned a potential federal prosecution of someone who prosecutors felt was dangerous because the case against the person lacked an immigration component, an email obtained by NBC News showed. The office instead left the case to state prosecutors.

Mobilizing National Resources

Following the confrontation, ICE launched โ€œOperation At Large,โ€ a coast-to-coast initiative designed to supercharge apprehensions. The scale is unprecedented. Over 21,000 National Guard troops and 250 IRS agents have been folded into the effort, alongside thousands of ICE and federal law enforcement personnel. (RELATED: Police Case That Fueled 2020 Protests Returns To Supreme Court)

The operationโ€™s reach has required coordination across agencies, pulling FBI and DOJ resources away from their usual focus areas and toward immigration-related priorities.

The Daily Mail has more on Miller’s dramatic call to action:

According to the Washington Examiner, Miller allegedly told them: ‘You guys aren’t doing a good job. You’re horrible leaders.’

He then reportedly gave them an open challenge and asked: ‘Why aren’t you at Home Depot? Why aren’t you at 7-Eleven?’

Miller further pushed, getting into what an official called a ‘p***ing contest,’ saying: ‘What do you mean youโ€™re going after criminals?โ€™

Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

In a statement to the Examiner, ICE deputy assistant director of media affairs Laszlo Baksay said the descriptions were ‘inaccurate.’

However, the conservative-leaning outlet cited sources within ICE and DHS who claimed Millerโ€™s remarks further eroded morale among rank-and-file agents, which was already low.

โ€œHe had nothing positive to say about anybody,โ€ one official told the paper, describing the mood following Millerโ€™s visit.

Another source painted a darker picture of the internal climate confronting ICE agents:

โ€œTheyโ€™ve been threatened, told theyโ€™re watching their emails and texts and Signals. Thatโ€™s what is horrible about things right now. Itโ€™s a fearful environment. Everybody in leadership is afraid. Thereโ€™s no morale. Everybody is demoralized.โ€

Despite the backlash, Miller defended the administrationโ€™s approach during an appearance with Sean Hannity, insisting the 3,000-arrest-per-day quota is only a temporary benchmark โ€” and warning that agents should be prepared for that figure to rise.

Florida Sweep Sets Records, Nashville Backlash Sparks Tensions

Localized operations have revealed just how expansive the crackdown has become since Miller and Noem appeared at Potomac Center Plaza in Southwest D.C. Across the nation, agents have ramped up early-morning sweeps and workplace raids, often coordinated with minimal local notification. In Florida, a weeklong action labeled โ€œOperation Tidal Waveโ€ resulted in 1,120 arrests โ€” the largest ICE enforcement action ever recorded in a single state.

Tennessee saw similar efforts, with 196 arrests in the Nashville area. The local response was sharply critical. Nashvilleโ€™s mayor denounced the operation as out of step with the cityโ€™s values and implemented policies limiting cooperation with ICE. Republicans in Congress are now investigating whether the mayorโ€™s office leaked information about ICE agents โ€” a serious charge with national implications.

Focus on Career Criminals โ€” But Collateral Arrests Are Rising

Officially, the crackdown targets individuals with criminal records or prior deportation orders. But internal ICE guidance reportedly encourages officers to make โ€œcollateral arrestsโ€ โ€” detaining illegal immigrants encountered in the field, even if they werenโ€™t the original target and have no criminal history.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Flickr, https://www.flickr.com/photos/us_icegov/54295293536/in/photostream/, Creative Commons Attribution-Public Domain Mark 1.0 Universal (CC BY-NC-SA 1.0)

The broader approach has raised legal and logistical concerns, as well as fears of potential overreach, according to immigrant advocacy groups.

Leadership Purge Signals Internal Pressure

It also hasnโ€™t come without fallout inside ICE. Two senior officials โ€” Kenneth Genalo and Robert Hammer โ€” have been removed from their posts in recent weeks. Sources say the firings reflect internal friction over how aggressively to pursue the administrationโ€™s ambitious targets. They also serve as a warning to others who might be perceived as resistant to the push.

White House: Fulfilling the Mandate, Critics Question the Cost

The administration stands by the operation. Officials say it delivers on President Trumpโ€™s second-term promise: to secure the border and remove criminal illegal aliens.

Still, questions remain. Legal scholars are raising red flags over the breadth of federal involvement, and local-federal cooperation is growing more strained. As the operation continues, so does the debate โ€” over strategy, law, and the real-world impact on communities nationwide.

IRS, DHS Reach Game-Changing Agreement For Trump Immigration Agenda

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Illegal Immigration in the United State via Wikimedia Commons

History in the making…

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have reportedly come to an agreement to allow ICE to access taxpayer information to locateย illegal immigrantsย subject to deportation.

According to Fox News, the Trump administration filed a memorandum of understanding late Monday with a court to create guardrails and a process for ICE requests to the IRS to further investigations of criminal illegal immigrants who have failed or refuse to leave the United States 90 days after a judge has issued a final order of removal.ย 

“The Internal Revenue Service and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement have entered into a memorandum of understanding to establish a clear and secure process to support law enforcementโ€™s efforts to combat illegal immigration,” a Treasury Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

“The bases for this MOU are founded in longstanding authorities granted by Congress, which serve to protect the privacy of law-abiding Americans while streamlining the ability to pursue criminals,” the statement said. “After four years of Joe Biden flooding the nation with illegal aliens, President Trumpโ€™s highest priority is to ensure the safety of the American people.”

A senior Treasury Department official said the illegal immigrants have been given due process but have overstayed 90 days post a judge’s removal order. 

The MOU outlines a process to ensure that sensitive taxpayer data information is protected while allowing law enforcement to pursue criminal violations, the official said.ย 

A draft agreement reported last month by the Washington Post said it would limit ICE to confirm the addresses of illegal immigrants who have final removal orders.

The deal would allow ICE to submit the names and addresses of illegal immigrants to the IRS, who could then cross-check thoseย immigrants’ tax recordsย and provide the immigration agency with current address information.

The significant step forward comes amid the Trump Administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

On Monday, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Robertsย temporarily paused a lower courtโ€™s orderย requiring theย Trump administrationย to returnย Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Maryland resident who was mistakenly deported toย El Salvador. This pause delays the midnight deadline previously set for Abrego Garciaโ€™s return.

U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis had earlier mandated the administration to โ€œfacilitate and effectuateโ€ Abrego Garciaโ€™s return by midnight, emphasizing that his deportation was an โ€œadministrative error.โ€ The Department of Justice (DOJ) acknowledged the mistake but argued that the courtโ€™s injunction was โ€œpatently unlawful,โ€ asserting that the government lacks the authority to retrieve him from El Salvador.

Trump Administration Delivers Historic Border Security Win โ€” Lowest Apprehensions Since 1970

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Trump at the border wall via Wikimedia Commons

The Trump administration has closed fiscal year 2025 with a historic milestone on border security โ€” the lowest U.S. Border Patrol apprehensions in more than five decades, according to preliminary enforcement data released by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Border agents recorded 237,565 apprehensions in fiscal year 2025 โ€” slightly above the 201,780 apprehensions in 1970 but dramatically below recent levels. The numbers represent an 87% drop compared to the average of the past four fiscal years (1.86 million apprehensions) and showcase what can happen when the federal government finally enforces immigration laws.

This achievement came even though 72% of this yearโ€™s total apprehensions happened during the final 111 days of the Biden administration โ€” before President Trump returned to office and immediately began reversing his predecessorโ€™s โ€œopen-borderโ€ policies.

โ€œFiscal year 2025 shows what happens when we enforce the law without compromise,โ€ said CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott. โ€œFor too long, agents and officers were handcuffed by failed policies. Today they are empowered to do their jobs โ€” and the result is the most secure border in modern history.โ€


Reversing Bidenโ€™s Border Chaos

When President Trump took office in January 2025, he inherited what many described as a border crisis fueled by Bidenโ€™s mass-release policies. In just the first 111 days of the fiscal year, under Bidenโ€™s watch, 172,026 apprehensions occurred โ€” nearly three-quarters of the yearโ€™s total.

But once Trumpโ€™s immigration directives took effect, the situation changed dramatically. Over the next 254 days, apprehensions plummeted to 65,539 โ€” just 27% of the fiscal yearโ€™s total.

September 2025 alone saw only about 279 apprehensions per day along the Southwest border โ€” a staggering 95% decline compared to the Biden-era daily average of 5,110. It also marked the fifth consecutive month of zero illegal immigrant releases by Border Patrol โ€” a stark contrast to 9,144 releases in September 2024.

Across all entry points, CBP recorded roughly 26,000 total encounters in September, down 89% from Bidenโ€™s monthly averages.


Strong Action From Day One

President Trump wasted no time taking decisive action to reestablish border control:

  • Deployed additional personnel to the southern border.
  • Ended โ€œcatch-and-releaseโ€, ensuring illegal migrants are no longer released while awaiting hearings.
  • Shut down Bidenโ€™s CBP One app parole loophole, later repurposing the app to help migrants self-deport.
  • Paused parole programs and authorized ICE to cancel parole statuses.
  • Ordered strict enforcement of existing immigration laws, restoring morale and authority to frontline border agents.

These policies stand in sharp contrast to Bidenโ€™s approach, which relied on controversial โ€œparoleโ€ programs and insisted on new legislation instead of acting on existing laws.

Democrat Files Articles Of Impeachment Against Kristi Noem

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Ted Eytan from Washington, DC, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

On Wednesday, Rep.ย Robin Kellyย (D-Ill.) introduced articles of impeachment against Homeland Security Secretaryย Kristi Noem.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Kelly outlined three impeachment articles against the secretary, accusing Noem of obstruction of Congress, โ€œviolation of public trustโ€ and โ€œself-dealing.โ€

โ€œSecretary Noem has brought her reign of terror to the Chicagoland area, L.A., New Orleans, Charlotte, Durham, and communities north to south to east to west,โ€ Kelly said at the press conference. โ€œShe needs to be held accountable for her actions.โ€

The Hill reports:

The first impeachment article alleges Noem denied Kelly and other members of Congress โ€œoversight of ICE detention facilities,โ€ the congresswoman said at her presser.

Kelly explained the second article, which accuses Noem of violating public trust, by saying Noem โ€œdirected DHS agents to arrest people without warrants, use tear gas against citizens, and ignore due process.โ€

Kelly said Noem frequently says โ€œsheโ€™s taking murderers and rapists off our streets, but none of the 614 people arrested during Operation Midway Blitz in Chicago has been charged or convicted of murder or rape.โ€

On the third impeachment article, which accuses the secretary of self-dealing, Kelly said Noem โ€œabused her power for personal benefit,โ€ and โ€œsteered a federal contract to a new firm run by a friend.โ€

Kelly announced her intention to file the impeachment articles last week, after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Good in Minneapolis.

Jonathan Ross, ICE agent whoย shot Goodย in her car last week in Minneapolis, experienced internal bleeding as a result of the encounter, officials claim.

In video shot by an eyewitness, Ross and other ICE agents were seen approaching Goodโ€™s red Honda Pilot as she blocked a road during an ICE operation. When one of the agents ordered Good to โ€œget out of the f*cking carโ€ and stuck his hands in the vehicle, she tried to drive off. Thatโ€™s when Ross, who was in front of the car, fired off three shots. Good was pronounced dead a short time later.

The Trump administration has argued that the shooting was justified as self-defense, going so far as to call Good a โ€œderanged leftistโ€ and โ€œdomestic terroristโ€ who was looking to harm federal agents.

Video shows Ross walking away on his own after firing the fatal shots. Noemย said at the timeย that he was hospitalized, but she did not specify his injuries.

The congresswoman said that as of Wednesday morning the measure has the support of almost 70 members of Congress.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) brushed off the impeachment effort as โ€œsilly.โ€

โ€œHow silly during a serious time. As ICE officers are facing a 1,300% increase in assaults against them, Rep. Kelly is more focused on showmanship and fundraising clicks than actually cleaning up her crime-ridden Chicago district,โ€ the spokesperson said in an emailed statement to The Hill.

โ€œWe hope she would get serious about doing her job to protect American people, which is what this Department is doing under Secretary Noem.โ€

This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

Trump Signals Support For Legal Protections For Longtime Migrant Workers

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Donald Trump via Gage Skidmore Flickr

DES MOINES, Iowa โ€” Speaking at the Iowa State Fairgrounds hours before Independence Day, President Donald Trump said he is drafting legislation to shield long-serving farm and hospitality workers from immigration enforcement actions.

โ€œWeโ€™re working on legislation right now,โ€ Trump told the crowd. โ€œFarmers, look, they know better. They work with them for years.โ€

He referenced cases where immigrant workers had been employed for over a decade before being removed through federal action.

โ€œYou had cases… where people have worked for a farm for 14, 15 years, and they get thrown out pretty viciously. And we canโ€™t do it,โ€ Trump said.

The remarks appear to address the impact of immigration raids, such as those reported at California farms, where labor shortages have followed large-scale enforcement. A significant portion of that workforce is made up of illegal immigrants.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who was present on stage, had initially raised the issue.

After weeks of back-and-forth, Trump ultimately echoed her stance on Thursday night โ€” arguing that those in agriculture and hospitality deserve more authority over who they employ. โ€œWeโ€™re going to work with them, and weโ€™re going to work very strong and smart,โ€ he said. โ€œWeโ€™re going to put you in charge. Weโ€™re going to make you responsible. And I think thatโ€™s going to make a lot of people happy.โ€

Acknowledging that the proposal may not sit well with his partyโ€™s immigration hardliners, Trump added: โ€œradical right people, who I also happen to like a lot, they may not be quite as happy. But theyโ€™ll understand, wonโ€™t they?โ€

He then turned to Rollins and said, โ€œDo you think theyโ€™ll understand that youโ€™re the one that brought this whole situation up?โ€

The comments signal a more pragmatic tone on immigration from the president, who has long emphasized enforcement but now appears open to reforms aimed at stabilizing the labor force in key sectors.

4 FEMA Employees Fired After Approving ‘Egregious’ Payments For Illegal Migrants

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Image via Pixabay free images

The buck stops here…

The Department of Homeland Security told Fox News that “four employees are being fired today for circumventing leadership and unilaterally making the egregious payment for hotels for migrants in New York City.”

The firings come after Elon Musk wrote on X Monday that “The DOGE team just discovered that FEMA sent $59M LAST WEEK to luxury hotels in New York City to house illegal migrants.” 

“Sending this money violated the law and is in gross insubordination to the Presidentโ€™s executive order,” Musk added. “That money is meant for American disaster relief and instead is being spent on high end hotels for illegals!”  

“A clawback demand will be made today to recoup those funds,” he added. 

A New York City Hall spokesperson confirmed to Fox News that the city had received funds “through the past week” that were allocated by the Biden administration for the purpose of housing and supporting illegal immigrants. 

Of the $59.3 million, $19 million was for direct hotel costs, while the balance funded other services such as food and security. According to NY City Hall, the funds were not part of a disaster relief grant. 

Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) told “Fox & Friends” on Tuesday that the firings were ‘long overdue.”

“These funds have been misappropriated going back to the Biden administration and New York City โ€“ a sanctuary city โ€“ has been wasting billions of dollars of taxpayer money to provide free housing, clothing, food, education and healthcare to illegal immigrants, including criminal aliens that are here illegally,” he added.

“And so I applaud DHS for taking action to stop these payments under President Trump’s leadership because we have incentivized cities like New York and states like New York โ€“ a sanctuary state โ€“ to allow this to continue and it has to stop,” Lawler also said.

The Department of Homeland Security previously told Fox News Digital that those who made the payment will be “held accountable.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that she supported getting rid of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) “the way it exists today.” 

In an appearance on CNNโ€™s “State of the Union,” Noemโ€™s stance appeared in line with that of President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, who have both suggested shutting down FEMA could be an option, as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has reportedly gained access to FEMAโ€™s sensitive disaster relief data to review its programs. 

“Can and should Donald Trump shut it down?” CNNโ€™s Dana Bash asked Noem. 

“He can. And I believe that he will do that evaluation with his team,” Noem said. “And he’s talking about it, which I’m grateful for. He’ll work with Congress, though, to make sure that it’s done correctly and that we’re still there to help folks who have a terrible disaster or a crisis in their life. He’s been very clear that he still believes there’s a role for the federal government to come in and help people get back up on their feet. But there’s a lot of fraud and waste and abuse out there. And since President Trump has taken over and come back into this administration, we’ve seen incredible change.” 

Noem, who visited Asheville, North Carolina, on Saturday to meet with Hurricane Helene victims and survey the damage, told CNN that she oversaw 12 different natural disasters that prompted a FEMA response when she was governor of South Dakota.

During former President Biden’s term, FEMA faced backlash after it was reported that while they lacked the necessary funds needed to help Hurricane Helene victims, they were dishing out money that ended up being used to aid illegal immigrants.  

Speaker Mike Johnson clarified that emergency relief funding is separate from FEMA funds allocated to immigration, but said that the agency should not have any part in funding the border crisis. 

FEMA partners with Customs and Border Control (CBP) and administers money to the Shelter and Services Program (SSP), a government-funded program that provides assistance and housing for illegal immigrants released into the U.S. 

โ€œFEMA spent tens of millions of dollars in Democrat areas, disobeying orders, but left the people of North Carolina high and dry. It is now under review and investigation,โ€ Trump posted, adding:

THE BIDEN RUN FEMA HAS BEEN A DISASTER. FEMA SHOULD BE TERMINATED! IT HAS BEEN SLOW AND TOTALLY INEFFECTIVE. INDIVIDUAL STATES SHOULD HANDLE STORMS, ETC., AS THEY COME. BIG SAVINGS, FAR MORE EFFICIENT!!!

Kilmar Abrego Garcia Taken Into Custody By ICE

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Arrest image via Pixabay

Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the immigrant deported to El Salvador who became a political flashpoint for the Trump administrationโ€™s immigration crackdown, wasย detainedย again on Monday

Speaking to reporters outside the ICE Field Office in Baltimore after Abrego Garcia was detained, his lawyer, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, said ICE officials had declined to tell them where they were detaining Abrego Garcia prior to his removal, or tell them why they were arresting him. 

“As of the last five minutes, Mr. Abrego Garcia has filed a new lawsuit in the federal district court for the District of Maryland challenging his confinement and challenging his deportation to Uganda, or to any other country unless and until he’s had a fair trialโ€” as in, an immigration court, as well as his full appeal rights,,” Sandoval-Moshenberg sad.

The habeas petition, filed in the U.S. District Court of Maryland, was assigned to U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis, who has presided since March over his civil case.

Abrego Garcia, who fled El Salvador as a teenager and lived in Maryland, addressed supporters before entering his appointment.

โ€œMy name is Kilmar Abrego Garcia, and I want you to remember this, remember that I am free and I was able to be reunited with my family,โ€ he said. โ€œThis was a miracle. Thank you to God and thank you to the community. I want to thank each and every one of you who marched, lift your voices, never stop praying, and continue to fight in my name.โ€

Abrego Garcia’s legal fight for months has dominated U.S. headlines, after he was deported by theย Trump administrationย to El Salvador in violation of a 2019 court order. He faces a possible second deportation, this time to Uganda.

Shortly before his arrival Monday morning, immigration advocates, faith leaders, and other community members massed outside the field office at sunrise for a vigil, organized by two immigration advocacy groups.

The Trump administration returned him to the U.S. months after sending him to El Salvador, under orders from a federal judge and from the Supreme Court.

He was arrested upon return to the U.S. on human smuggling charges stemming from a 2022 traffic stop in Tennesee. He remained in federal detention until Friday, when he was released from U.S. custody and ordered to return to Maryland, where a judge said he could remain under electronic surveillance and under ICE supervision while awaiting trial.

ICE officials notified Abrego Garcia’s attorneys shortly after his release on Friday that they planned to deport him to Uganda.

The notice, sent by ICE’s Office of the Principal Legal Adviser, said it was intended to “serve as notice that DHS may remove your client, Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, to Uganda no earlier than 72 hours from now (absent weekends).”

Trump’s border czar Tom Homan told Fox News in an interview Sunday night that Abrego Garcia was “absolutely” going to be deported from the U.S, and said Uganda is “on the table” as the third country of removal.ย 

“We have an agreement with them. It’s on a table, absolutely,” Homan said in an interview on “The Big Weekend Show” Sunday evening.

“He is absolutely going to be deported,” Homan reiterated. 

For now, he said, Abrego Garcia “can enjoy the little time he has with his family. And for the person who says we’re not going to separate family, his family can go with him, because he’s leaving.”

Former First Lady Reveals The Trump Policy That ‘Keeps Her Awake At Night’

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FLOTUS at Fayetteville, N.C. -The Arts Center speech Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian

Former first ladyย Michelle Obamaย expressed fear over Presidentย Donald Trump’s immigration policies, saying they have kept her up at night.ย 

“Now that we have leadership that is sort of indiscriminately determining who belongs and who doesn’t,” the former first lady said Monday during an appearance on the podcast “On Purpose with Jay Shetty,” adding that such deportation decisions “aren’t being made with courts and with due process.” 

“I worry for people of color all over this country, and I don’t know that we will have the advocates to protect everybody,” she continued. “And that makes me โ€ฆ that frightens me. It keeps me up at night.” 

“And I and I see that when I’m driving around LA. I’m just looking in the faces of folks who could be a victim and I’m wondering, how are you feeling, how do you feel standing on the bus stop,” she said. 

“In this current climate, for me itโ€™s whatโ€™s happening to immigrants,” Obama said when asked about “recent tests of fear” related to individuals facing discrimination over the color of their skin. 

Obama noted that the “fear” does not personally impact her as a former first lady who has police protection. 

“Itโ€™s not the fear for myself anymore,” she continued. “I drive around in a four-car motorcade with a police escort. Iโ€™m Michelle Obama. I do still worry about my daughters in the world, even though they are somewhat recognizable.”

“My fears are for what I know is happening out there in streets all over the city,” she added, referring to her hometown of Chicago. 

During a Monday White House briefing to discuss border enforcement during President Donald Trumpโ€™s first hundred days border czar Tom Homan said that under Trump, unlawful crossings were โ€œhistorically lowโ€ and that the border was the most secure it has ever been. Homan drew a sharp contrast to the record number of illegal immigrants that entered the United States under the Biden administration.

โ€œEvery president I ever worked for took border security seriously because you canโ€™t have national security if you donโ€™t have strong border security,โ€ Homan said. โ€œEven President Obama and President Clinton took some steps to secure the border because they understood national security was important. Joe Biden is the first president in the history of this nation who came into office and unsecured a border on purpose. Thatโ€™s just a fact.โ€

Homan accused the Biden administration of weaponizing its immigration policies, motivated by the desire that a future Democrat president would give illegal immigrants released into the country amnesty, saying Biden was โ€œselling this country off for future political power.โ€

Watch:

Contrasting Biden and Trump, Homan said that between 11,000-15,000 people were crossing the border illegally per day this time of the year under Biden, while under Trump, just 178 had crossed in the last 24 hours. During the same time, he said there were 1,800 known โ€œgotawaysโ€ under Biden, compared to just 38 under Trump. Homan added that from January 20 to April 1, 2024, Biden released 184,000 illegals out of federal custody into the country. The Trump administration has only released nine total, including four so they could testify in criminal cases and four with extreme medical conditions.

In total, Homan said that there have been 139,000 deportations under Trump. He added that the administration was prioritizing the estimated 700,000 illegals who have been charged with crimes.

First Judge Approves Trump’s Use Of Alien Enemies Act For Venezuelan Deportations

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Image via Pixabay

On Tuesday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Stephanie Haines ruled that President Trump’s invocation of the Alien Enemies Act to deport alleged illegal immigrant gang members complies with the law.

Haines, a Trump appointee with a background as a prosecutor in Pennsylvania, ruled that Trumpโ€™s use of the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) of 1798 to deport Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang members is legally valid, citing TdAโ€™s actions as a โ€œpredatory incursionโ€ under the law.

As The Hill reports:

Haines, a Trump appointee, emphasized her โ€œunflagging obligation is to apply the law as written.โ€ 

โ€œHaving done its job, the Court now leaves it to the Political Branches of the government, and ultimately to the people who elect those individuals, to decide whether the laws and those executing them continue to reflect their will,โ€ Haines wrote in her 43-page ruling. 

The new split comes as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which has filed a wave of lawsuits across the country challenging Trumpโ€™s use of the AEA, calls on the Supreme Court to immediately take up the issue and swiftly provide a nationwide resolution.

“The Alien Enemies Act โ€” historically invoked during wartime, including World War II โ€” empowers the president to detain or deport nationals of enemy nations. Trumpโ€™s application of the law targets TdA, a Venezuelan transnational gang designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization during his second administration, despite ongoing legal debate over whether gang activity constitutes an “invasion” or “incursion.”

Tuesday’s ruling contrasts with other federal judgesโ€™ decisions, such as Judge Fernando Rodriguezโ€™s May 1, 2025, injunction against the AEAโ€™s use, highlighting a judicial split that may lead to a Supreme Court challenge.

DeSantis Opens โ€˜Deportation Depotโ€™ in Florida a Day After Alligator Alcatraz Court Victory

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Ron DeSantis via Gage Skidmore Flickr

Florida Gov.ย Ron DeSantisย has opened โ€œDeportation Depotโ€ migrant detention center in Florida, a follow-up to the embattled โ€œAlligator Alcatraz.โ€

โ€œDeportation Depotโ€ is located about 45 miles away from Jacksonville in the community of Sanderson, at the site of the Baker Correctional Institution.

The facility has the capacity for 1,500 detainees,ย Fox News reported. As of Friday, a little over 100 migrants had been moved there.

DeSantis said last month that he moved to begin work on a new facility to fulfill an urgent need for more shelter for illegal migrants as theyโ€™re rounded up by ICE agents throughout the state.

โ€œThere is a demand for this,โ€ DeSantis told reporters at the time. โ€œIโ€™m confident that it will be filled.โ€

The opening of the new facility came a day after the $250 million โ€œAlligator Alcatrazโ€ was granted a rare win by an appeals court.

The detention center was ordered to ship out all detainees and close within 60 days.ย The rulingย by Judgeย Kathleen M. Williamsย stemmed from a lawsuit filed by the Friends of the Everglades and the Miccosukee Tribe that accused the Sunshine State of violating the National Environmental Policy Act.

A stay on Williamsโ€™ ruling was granted by a three-judge panel in Atlanta on Thursday, pending an appeal. โ€œAlligator Alcatrazโ€ can continue holding detainees for now.

In a video posted on his X account Thursday, DeSantis declared: โ€œThe mission continues on immigration enforcement.โ€

Until yesterday, โ€œAlligator Alcatrazโ€ faced a series of legal and PR losses, with some detainees alleging mistreatment.