Immigration

Home Immigration

Trump Officially Deports Migrant Influencer

2
Image via Pixabay

President Trump has ensured an illegal immigrant from Venezuela who garnered a massive online following by posting videos of him flashing stacks of cash and urging migrants to “invade” American homes and take them over under squatters’ rights laws has been deported.

Leonel Moreno, 26, told his audience he planned to make a business out of his scams.

“He has been deported,” the Trump administration announced Friday on its @RapidResponse47 X account.

In his videos, he mocked U.S. taxpayers and even other immigrants who work for a living, alternately waving stacks of hundred-dollar bills, crying, singing or posing with an infant with mucus running out of his nose.

“I didn’t cross the Rio Grande to work like a slave,” Moreno said in Spanish, according to a translation of his videos. “I came to the U.S. to mark my territory.”

He bragged about raking in cash via TikTok as well as entitlement payments from U.S. taxpayers. He claimed that his family had received $350 a week in government handouts since entering the U.S. illegally and that at one point he was raking in as much as $1,000 a week with his viral videos.

“You’re hurt because I make more than you without much work while you work like slaves, understand?” he said in one of his videos. “That’s the difference between you and me. I’m always going to make lots of money without much work, and you’re always going to be exploited and miserable and insignificant.”

TikTok eventually shut down his account, which had amassed about 500,000 followers.

ICE picked him up after his online profile exploded, but he spent months in custody under the Biden administration. 

DOJ To Investigate Officials Who Obstruct Immigration Enforcement

10
Illegal Immigration in the United State via Wikimedia Commons

The Justice Department wants federal prosecutors across the country to investigate state or local officials who obstruct immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump’s new administration

According to a new memo shared by the Trump Administration, Acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove, Trump’s former defense attorney, outlines “interim decisions and policy changes” pending the confirmation of Trump’s nominee for U.S. Attorney General, Pam Bondi. He said interim changes are necessary as an initial response to Trump’s executive orders regarding “three of the most serious threats facing the American people.” 

Those threats, Bove wrote, are cartels and other transnational criminal organizations, such as Tren de Aragua (TdA) and La Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), which “are a scourge on society resulting in an unstable and unsafe border and huge flows of illegal immigration in violation of U.S. law.” The memo said the second threat is how “brutal and intolerable violent crime by members of these organizations and illegal aliens is escalating rapidly across the country.” The third threat defined by Bove is how the “fentanyl crisis and opioid epidemic are poisoning our communities and have inflicted an unprecedented toll of addiction, suffering, and death.” 

“The Justice Department must, and will, work to eradicate these threats,” Bove wrote. “Indeed, it is the responsibility of the Justice Department to defend the Constitution and, accordingly, to lawfully execute the policies that the American people elected President Trump to implement. The Justice Department’s responsibility, proudly shouldered by each of its employees, includes aggressive enforcement of laws enacted by Congress, as well as vigorous defense of the President’s actions on behalf of the United States against legal challenges. The Department’s personnel must come together in the offices that taxpayers have funded to do this vitally important work.” 

The memo states that the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution and other authorities “require state and local actors to comply with the Executive Branch’s immigration enforcement activities.” 

Bove reiterated how “federal law prohibits state and local actors from resisting, obstructing, and otherwise failing to comply with lawful immigration-related commands and requests, pursuant to, for example, the President’s extensive Article II authority with respect to foreign affairs and national security, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and the Alien Enemies Act.” 

Bove said U.S. Attorneys Offices “and litigating components of the Department of Justice shall investigate incidents involving any such misconduct for potential prosecution, including for obstructing federal functions” in violation of federal statutes.

The Chicago Police Department is refusing to assist with upcoming deportations by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) across the Windy City.

Chicago officials took a vow of their own to not comply after Trump laid out plans to tackle issues surrounding illegal immigration and the U.S. border.

Chicago police said the municipal code includes legislation that prevents them from assisting federal immigration authorities with enforcement based on immigration status. The department also noted it does not document immigration status, nor does it share the immigration status of individuals with federal authorities.

City ordinance requires a supervisor to respond to the scene if an immigration agency requests assistance with a civil immigration enforcement operation.

“To be clear, the Chicago Police Department will not assist or intervene in civil immigration enforcement in accordance with the City of Chicago Municipal Code,” the police department’s statement read. “As always, we will continue to enforce the law if a crime occurs, regardless of the citizenship status of those involved.”

Blue City Prosecutor Vows To Pursue Federal Agents Criminally After Trump Term Ends

By U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - https://www.ice.gov/about-ice/ero, Public Domain,

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, a Soros-backed progressive prosecutor, is facing mounting bipartisan criticism after making fiery remarks comparing federal immigration agents to Nazis and suggesting they should be “hunted down.”

Speaking last week, Krasner denounced Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as “a small bunch of wannabe Nazis,” adding, “If we have to hunt you down the way they hunted down Nazis for decades, we will find your identities.”

The comments prompted swift backlash from Republicans, with Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.) a member of the House Intelligence Committee, urging the Department of Justice to open a criminal investigation.

Steube cited federal statutes that make threatening a federal law enforcement officer a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

“The DOJ should absolutely arrest and convict this guy,” Steube said.

Krasner has a history of antagonism toward federal immigration enforcement. He previously claimed he would seek to arrest and prosecute federal agents who “come to Philly to commit crimes,” an apparent reference to controversial law enforcement actions during a Minnesota operation in which a woman was shot after allegedly attempting to ram officers with her vehicle.

In the speech that drew Steube’s condemnation, Krasner boasted that the 350 million Americans living in the United States vastly outnumber ICE agents, and he floated the idea of coordinating with prosecutors in other states to pursue them criminally after President Donald Trump’s term ends.

Even prominent Democrats distanced themselves from Krasner’s rhetoric. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro called the remarks “unacceptable… abhorrent and it is wrong; period; hard-stop; end of sentence.”

Republicans were far less restrained.

“We have a psychopath with a badge,” Rep. Dan Meuser (R-Pa) said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

Meuser blasted Krasner for what he described as chronic failures to prosecute violent crime, pointing to reports that the district attorney’s office prosecutes only about 30% of violent crime arrests.

“Every responsible Democrat must condemn this behavior,” Meuser said. “Failure to do so only increases the temperature in an already volatile situation, endangering federal law enforcement and communities alike.”

Meuser also accused Senate Democrats of borrowing Krasner’s “reckless political playbook” by using Department of Homeland Security funding as leverage in government shutdown negotiations.

Critics have long dubbed Krasner “Let ’Em Go Larry” for his lenient prosecution policies—an approach Meuser contrasted sharply with Krasner’s aggressive posture toward federal immigration officers.

Meuser has authored the Holding Prosecutors Accountable Act, legislation that would strip Justice Department grant eligibility from district attorney offices that fail to prosecute at least two-thirds of arrests.

The Department of Homeland Security weighed in as well. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called Krasner’s comments “vile,” accusing him of encouraging violence and doxing of law enforcement officers.

“He is intentionally stoking the flames of hatred and division in this country for political gain,” McLaughlin said, citing a reported 1,300% increase in assaults against ICE agents. “The violence and dehumanization of these men and women who are simply enforcing the law must stop.”

McLaughlin argued that Krasner should instead be thanking ICE for removing dangerous criminals from the Philadelphia region, including Yehi Badawi of Egypt, convicted of aggravated assault and robbery; Cuban national Alan De Armas-Tundidor, a convicted drug trafficker; and Thanh Long Huynh of Vietnam, convicted of rape and cocaine distribution.

Other Pennsylvania Republicans emphasized that Krasner’s threats are legally hollow.

State Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-Gettysburg) who taught constitutional law at the U.S. Army War College, noted that the federal supremacy clause would override any attempt by Philadelphia officials to interfere with lawful federal immigration enforcement.

“The Constitution is not optional,” Mastriano said bluntly.

State Sen. Jarrett Coleman (R-Allentown) chairman of the Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee, echoed that warning, calling claims that city officials can block ICE “empty threats.”

“If they do obstruct federal law enforcement efforts, the Pennsylvania Senate will be the least of their worries,” Coleman said, adding that if Krasner focused more on prosecuting violent offenders, “Philadelphia wouldn’t be such a s—hole.”

As criticism intensifies, Krasner’s remarks have reignited a broader debate over progressive prosecutors, public safety, and the limits of local resistance to federal law enforcement—one that now may draw scrutiny from the Justice Department itself.

Trump Border Czar Warns California Officials Can Be Arrested If They Disrupt ICE Raids

By Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America - Thomas Homan, CC BY-SA 2.0,

Things are escalating…

On Sunday, Border czar Tom Homan warned California officials could face arrest and prosecution if they “cross the line” following President Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles to quell ongoing immigration protests.

Trump ordered at least 2,000 National Guard members to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents after two days of clashes with demonstrators, despite state and city leaders saying they had not asked for assistance.

Homan said Trump’s order was not only to protect law enforcement officers but also to “protect this community.”

“The rhetoric is so high against ICE officers in this city that it’s a matter of time before someone gets seriously hurt,” Homan told NBC News’s Jacob Soboroff in an interview slated for broadcast Sunday night. “We’ve got help coming, and we’re going to do our job, and we’re going to continue doing that job.”

On Sunday morning, Newsom, in a post on the social platform X, claimed the federal government is “taking over the California National Guard” because “they want a spectacle.”

“Don’t give them one. Never use violence. Speak out peacefully,” he added.

In the NBC News interview, Homan bashed Newsom’s comments and called him “an embarrassment for the state.”

“I have absolutely no respect for this governor,” Homan said. “Criminal aliens are walking in this state every day because of his government policy. I don’t care what the governor thinks of me. I’m not running a popularity contest.”

Florida Attorney General Held In Contempt After Defending Trump Immigration Agenda

3

A federal judge has found that Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier was in civil contempt of court over her ruling to pause a new state law making it a crime for people living in the U.S. illegally to enter the state.

U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams ordered on April 29 that Uthmeier show cause on “why he should not be held in contempt or sanctioned” for violating a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the court, though Williams ultimately decided he was unable to convince her otherwise.

“If being held in contempt is what it costs to defend the rule of law and stand firmly behind President Trump’s agenda on illegal immigration, so be it,” Uthmeier said Tuesday in a post on X.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation into law in February that made it a misdemeanor for illegal immigrants to enter the state as part of President Donald Trump’s push to crack down on illegal immigration.

But on April 4, Williams issued a 14-day TRO in response to the law, following a lawsuit filed by the Florida Immigrant Coalition and other groups. She then extended the TRO another 11 days after learning the Florida Highway Patrol had arrested over a dozen people, including a U.S. citizen.

The court said on April 18 that Florida law enforcement officers were bound by the TRO, preventing them from enforcing the criminal immigration law.

The court also ordered the attorney general to provide notice to all law enforcement officers, which Uthmeier initially complied with.

On April 23, he sent a follow-up letter telling the law enforcement community that “no judicial order…properly restrains you from” enforcing the immigration law, adding that “no lawful, legitimate order currently impedes your agencies from continuing to enforce” the statute.

As a result, the court required Uthmeier to show cause as to why he should not be held in contempt for violating the TRO.

Following his response, the court opined that litigants cannot change the meaning of words as it suits them, ruling that Uthmeier was in contempt of the court’s April 18 order to provide the TRO to law enforcement officers regarding the enforcement of the immigration law.

As such, the court ordered Uthmeier to file bi-weekly reports detailing arrests, detentions or law enforcement actions when it comes to the immigration law prohibiting undocumented immigrants from entering the state of Florida, with the first being filed by July 1.

Trump Border Czar Lays Down The Law After Democrats Storm ICE Facility

4
By Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America - Thomas Homan, CC BY-SA 2.0,

President Trump’s border czar issued a stark warning to Democrats who recently stormed a Newark, New Jersey, ICE facility in the name of an “oversight” visit.

Tom Homan’s warning came days after Democratic officials allegedly stormed the ICE facility

“If you cannot support ICE, shame on you. If you can support sanctuary cities, shame on you, but you can’t cross that line,” Homan said Wednesday, railing against the Democrats during an appearance on “Kudlow.”

“When you cross a line of impediment, when you cross the line of knowingly harboring and concealing an illegal alien, when you criminally trespass one of our facilities, we will ask the attorney general to prosecute you.”

“You can’t cross that line of impediment,” he continued.

Homan previously responded “yes” when asked by a reporter if the lawmakers implicated in the situation should face censure or removal of their committee assignments. 

He also told Kudlow he had been in touch with Trump counselor Alina Habba, the acting U.S. attorney for the district of New Jersey, regarding the matter.

“Alina’s taking it seriously, going through a lot of videotape, talking to a lot of witnesses, and we’ll see where the investigation falls,” Homan shared.

He proceeded to blast the lawmakers as “very inappropriate” and “unprofessional,” stressing the need to control a facility containing “dangerous” illegal immigrant criminals for the safety of all parties – the detainees, officers and the public.

“Squad” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) recently offered a specific warning to DHS officials, including Homan and Sec. Kristi Noem, regarding Democratic officials entangled in the news.

“You lay a finger on [New Jersey Congresswoman] Bonnie Watson Coleman or any of the representatives that were there – you lay a finger on them, and we’re going to have a problem,” Ocasio-Cortez said on Instagram.

Homan dismissed the rhetoric, saying the New York Democrat “doesn’t know what she’s talking about” and that he has much more knowledge and experience in the border security realm than she does.

House Republicans have introduced measures to punish the Democrats involved in the altercation, including a censure resolution against Rep. LaMonica McIver, another lawmaker from New Jersey who was at the protest, and a resolution to strip them of their committee assignments.

On Tuesday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) warned against repercussions for his fellow Democrat lawmakers who clashed with federal agents at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility at Delaney Hall in Newark, New Jersey, last week.

During an exchange with Fox News reporter Chad Pergram, Jeffries repeatedly said “they’ll find out” when pressed what might happen if the House Democrats involved in the incident were to be arrested by federal authorities or get sanctioned.

Trump Administration Suffers Major Court Defeat In Sanctuary Cities Fight

4

The Trump administration suffered a significant legal setback on Wednesday after a federal judge dismissed the Department of Justice’s lawsuit challenging “sanctuary” immigration policies in four New Jersey cities, ruling the federal government lacks standing to bring the case.

U.S. District Judge Evelyn Padin threw out the DOJ’s lawsuit against Newark, Jersey City, Paterson, and Hoboken, concluding that even if the administration prevailed, New Jersey’s statewide immigration restrictions would remain in effect, meaning the court could not provide the relief the federal government was seeking. The case was dismissed without prejudice, leaving open the possibility that the DOJ could refile if it establishes standing.

The Justice Department filed the lawsuit in May 2025, arguing that the four cities’ policies unlawfully obstruct federal immigration enforcement and violate the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause.

The complaint described the municipal policies as “a frontal assault on the federal immigration laws and the federal authorities that administer them,” arguing they prevent willing local law enforcement agencies from assisting Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

According to Politico, Padin said the administration’s argument ignored a critical legal reality.

“The Federal Government’s case has a fundamental flaw—it treats the Challenged Policies as though they operate in isolation. They do not,” Padin wrote.

The judge noted that New Jersey’s statewide Immigrant Trust Directive independently limits how state and local law enforcement cooperate with federal civil immigration authorities. Because that directive would remain in force regardless of what happened to the four cities’ individual policies, striking down the local ordinances would not remedy the federal government’s alleged injury.

The Immigrant Trust Directive, originally issued in 2018 under then-Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration, was codified into state law earlier this year by Gov. Mikie Sherrill. It sharply limits voluntary cooperation between local police and federal immigration authorities except where required by law. The directive has already survived multiple legal challenges, including lawsuits brought by Republican-led counties that were rejected by both the U.S. District Court and the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.

The DOJ argued that portions of Newark’s, Jersey City’s, and Hoboken’s local policies went further than the statewide directive and therefore could be challenged independently. Padin disagreed, finding those differences either too minor or too speculative to justify continuing the case.

The ruling marks the latest courtroom setback for the Trump administration’s aggressive campaign against sanctuary jurisdictions. Earlier this week, another federal judge dismissed the DOJ’s lawsuit challenging Los Angeles’ sanctuary city ordinance, dealing another blow to the administration’s effort to compel greater local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement.

Neither President Donald Trump nor the White House has publicly commented on the ruling.

Attorney General Sues New York Over ‘Prioritizing Illegal Immigrants’

1
Governor Kathy Hochul and MTA Chair & CEO Janno Lieber make a subway safety announcement at the NYCT Rail Control Center (RCC) on Wednesday, Mar 6, 2024. (Marc A. Hermann / MTA)

Attorney General Pam Bondi Trump filed a lawsuit Wednesday against the state of New York and its governor, Kathy Hochul, and Attorney General Letitia James, alleging a failure to comply with federal law by shielding illegal immigrants.

Bondi said Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and state DMV head Mark Schroeder treated their state’s residents like second-class citizens.

“We’re here today because we have filed charges against the state of New York,” Bondi said at a 5 p.m. ET news conference. “We have filed charges against Kathy Hochul. We have filed charges against Letitia James and Mark Schroeder, who is with DMV. This is a new DOJ, and we are taking steps to protect Americans – American citizens.”

Bondi invoked a similar suit the DOJ filed against the state of Illinois a week ago and added, “New York didn’t listen. So now, you’re next.”

“If you are a state not complying with federal law, you’re next,” she said. “Get ready. And the great men and women of law enforcement are standing behind me today. We have FBI, DEF, DEA, ATF agents. They put their lives on the line every single day to protect us.”

Bondi alleged New York had given a “green light to any illegal alien in New York where law enforcement officers cannot check their identity if they pull them over.” She concluded:

Law enforcement officers do not have access to their background, and if these great men and women pull over someone and don’t have access to their background, they have no idea who they’re dealing with, and it puts their lives on the line every single day. Violent criminals, gang members, drug traffickers, human smugglers will no longer terrorize the American people, and that is why we are here today. You will be held accountable if you do not follow federal law. It’s over, it ends, and we’re coming after you.

Report: Appeals Court Blocks Trump Admin’s Deportation Flights

4
Image via Pixabay

A federal appellate court declined to issue a stay on a lower court’s orders in a suit challenging the Trump administration‘s authority to deport Venezuelan nationals via a 1798 wartime law. 

In a 2-1 decision Wednesday, a three-judge panel sided with the plaintiffs in the suit, further blocking the Trump administration’s ability to move forward with its deportation agenda. 

Judges Karen Henderson, Patricia Millett, and Justin Walker of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals presided over Monday’s oral arguments, which they agreed to hear last week on an expedited basis. 

In a concurring opinion of the ruling, Henderson, a Bush appointee, said: “At this early stage, the government has yet to show a likelihood of success on the merits. The equities favor the plaintiffs. And the district court entered the TROs for a quintessentially valid purpose: to protect its remedial authority long enough to consider the parties’ arguments.

“Accordingly, and for the foregoing reasons, the request to stay the district court’s TROs should be denied.”

Their decision could ultimately be kicked to the Supreme Court for further review.  

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

Trump Greenlights ‘Largest Deportation Operation’As Unrest Spreads

By U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement - https://www.ice.gov/about-ice/ero, Public Domain,

President Trump is doubling down…

Over the weekend, President Trump announced ICE must “expand efforts to detain and deport” illegal immigrants in “America’s largest [c]ities,” including Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.”

The president’s comment came in a Truth Social post on Sunday evening after a week of anti-ICE protests that have taken place in major cities across the country, with most demonstrations remaining peaceful while others turned into violent riots in places like LA and Portland.

“Our Nation’s ICE Officers have shown incredible strength, determination, and courage as they facilitate a very important mission, the largest Mass Deportation Operation of Illegal Aliens in History,” Trump wrote. “Every day, the Brave Men and Women of ICE are subjected to violence, harassment, and even threats from Radical Democrat Politicians, but nothing will stop us from executing our mission, and fulfilling our Mandate to the American People.”

“ICE Officers are herewith ordered, by notice of this TRUTH, to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History,” the president added.

The immigration protests began in LA on June 7, after local ICE raids resulted in hundreds of arrests.

The president immediately deployed the National Guard to the area when protests started two weeks ago, garnering criticism from Democrats insisting their presence would only escalate tensions.

As the protests and riots expanded nationally, continuing into this weekend, violence also took hold of certain crowds, injuring both federal and local law enforcement officials, as well as demonstrators. 

On Saturday, an innocent bystander was fatally shot during an organized protest in Salt Lake City, Utah, when two event peacekeepers in neon vests opened fire on a suspect, Arturo Gamboa, 24, who ran toward the crowd with a rifle, and ended up shooting the wrong person.

In spite of the protests, Trump doubled down on his efforts to deport illegal immigrants in his Sunday post.

“In order to achieve this, we must expand efforts to detain and deport Illegal Aliens in America’s largest Cities, such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, where Millions upon Millions of Illegal Aliens reside,” he said. “These, and other such Cities, are the core of the Democrat Power Center, where they use Illegal Aliens to expand their Voter Base, cheat in Elections, and grow the Welfare State, robbing good paying Jobs and Benefits from Hardworking American Citizens.”

He added that he wants ICE officers “to know that REAL Americans are cheering [them] on every day.”

“The American People want our Cities, Schools, and Communities to be SAFE and FREE from Illegal Alien Crime, Conflict, and Chaos,” he wrote. “That’s why I have directed my entire Administration to put every resource possible behind this effort, and reverse the tide of Mass Destruction Migration that has turned once Idyllic Towns into scenes of Third World Dystopia. Our Federal Government will continue to be focused on the REMIGRATION of Aliens to the places from where they came, and preventing the admission of ANYONE who undermines the domestic tranquility of the United States.”

The Trump administration called for a halt on deportation raids on agricultural sites, hotels and restaurants, and not to arrest “noncriminal collaterals” the New York Times reported. The move came out of fears that the sweeping raids were hurting key industries in the U.S.