The Wall Street Journal reports that President-elect Donald Trump is expected to begin his promised massive deportation operation the day after he is sworn into office.
The incoming Trump administration plans to immediately launch a mass deportation effort in major sanctuary cities across the country, with Chicago expected to be first on the list. According to In the Wall Street Journal. The Chicago raid began Tuesday morning and is expected to last a week, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) expected to deploy 100 to 200 officers to carry out the operation. (Related: Illegal immigrant sentenced to prison for voting in multiple elections)
Incoming border czar Tom Homan, who led ICE during the first Trump administration, previously told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the White House prioritized undocumented immigrants with criminal records and deportation orders, saying they were “the worst.” He said that he would prioritize the situation first. But Homan also made it clear that any illegal immigrant in the United States is a fair target.
Homan told the DCNF, “Similar to the first Trump administration, we will prioritize public safety threats, national security threats, and fugitives,” with gang members and other criminals primarily He added that the focus will be on “Those who were ordered deported through due process at the expense of millions of taxpayers and who never left the country and became fugitives are also a priority.”
EAGLE PASS, Texas – Tom Homan, the next “border czar” and former head of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency, heads to a camp where Texas National Guard and Department of Public Safety personnel gather for a Thanksgiving meal in Eagle Pass, Texas, on November 26.・Visit Eagle, 2024. (Photo by Scott Stephen Ball for The Washington Post, via Getty Images)
“They’re the biggest threat to this country first. We’ll start with the worst,” Homan continued. “But let me be clear: Even if you are in the country illegally, you are not exempt.”
The Chicago City Council recently shot down an attempt by two moderate aldermen to roll back sanctuary city laws currently in place.
Councilmembers Raymond Lopez and Silvana Tavares (both Democrats) are pushing to amend Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance to allow undocumented immigrants to cooperate with ICE when arrested for certain criminal acts. and argued that such a policy would be a net benefit to the city’s immigrant community. This would allow deportation officers to focus on criminals rather than carrying out enforcement across the city. However, their proposal was quickly rejected by the council on Wednesday.
Other sanctuary cities in the United States have also expressed strong opposition to President Trump’s enforcement plans. Los Angeles passed a sanctuary law shortly after Trump won the presidential election, San Diego County strengthened its current law, and Boston reaffirmed its sanctuary status in December.
Homan said city officials’ refusal to cooperate with ICE does not thwart ICE’s objectives, adding that those who intentionally harbor illegal immigrants from law enforcement will be prosecuted. .
In addition to a large-scale deportation operation, President Trump has abolished birthright citizenship for people born on U.S. soil to illegal immigrant parents, restarted construction of the U.S.-Mexico border wall, and announced plans to remain in Mexico. He also vowed to reinstate the United States and implement other hawkish policies.
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