ImmigrationCan Trump's threat of mass deportation of undocumented aliens be implemented?
On Monday, President Trump tweeted that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States” next week. Can this really happen? How soon? And what would that look like?
On Monday, President Trump tweeted that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way into the United States” next week. Can this really happen? How soon? And what would that look like?
This isn’t the first time Trump has threatened to deport undocumented immigrants on a massive scale. Shortly after his inauguration, Trump pledged to deport up to 3 million undocumented immigrants with “criminal records” during an interview with CBS News. That didn’t happen then. And the reality on the ground is far more complicated now.
What is ICE’s record of arrests and deportation?
There are an estimated 11.3 million undocumented immigrants currently residing in the United States, according to the Migration Policy Institute.
In fiscal year 2018, ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) made 158,581 arrests while recording 256,085 ICE removals — an increase from both 2016 and 2017, but a sharp decrease from its peak of 409,849 removals in fiscal year 2012.
Why Trump’s threat is questionable
But even if the president attempted to stay true to his word, there are not nearly enough ICE agents available to conduct an operation of this scale. As the Washington Post reported, such a plan would require weeks of planning, along with hundreds, if not thousands, of agents and law enforcement personnel, who have already been spread thin due to budget limitations and concentrated efforts along the U.S.-Mexico border. Adding to the miscommunication, ICE — which normally does not publicize its operations in advance — appeared to be caught off-guard by the announcement.
