President Trump has issued a new order calling for the recruitment of at least 20,000 new Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to aid in his flagship deportation policy.
If the President’s order is implemented, it will represent the largest expansion of ICE in the organization’s history.
In his order, Trump said, “No later than 60 days after the date of this proclamation, the Secretary of Homeland Security shall supplement existing enforcement and removal operations by deputizing and contracting with State and local law enforcement officers, former Federal officers, officers and personnel within other Federal agencies, and other individuals to increase the enforcement and removal operations force of the Department of Homeland Security by no less than 20,000 officers in order to conduct an intensive campaign to remove illegal aliens who have failed to depart voluntarily.”
At present, there are just 6,000 ICE officers focused on deportations. The new order would more than double that number. President Trump has also indicated that he wants local law enforcement to be more involved in deportations.
Staffing, funding and infrastructure have been key problems for Trump’s nascent policy to deport millions of illegal aliens.
In March, ICE warned Congress that it faces a massive black hole in its budget that could compromise its ability to track, arrest and remove illegals.
A few weeks ago, it was reported the Trump administration is now aiming for a minimum of one-million deportations this year.
More than 100,000 migrants have already been deported, and large numbers have also self-deported before authorities could apprehend them.
During his election campaign, President Trump promised “the largest mass deportation operation in American history.” He suggested at least 20 million people are in the US illegally and must be deported.
Since taking office in January, President Trump has following a multi-pronged approach to tackling the immigration crisis, which has included ending birthright citizenship, raids targeting the most dangerous illegals known to authorities already, and deals with other countries to house illegals deported from the US.
Members of the vicious gangs Tren de Aragua and MS-13 have been flown to El Salvador, to be housed in the notorious CECOT prison constructed specially to house the Latin American nation’s own home-grown gangbangers.
Securing the nation’s southern border has also been a particular focus of Trump’s new immigration policies.