All posts tagged "immigration"

Stephen Miller using ‘less visible’ immigration strategies after backlash: analyst

Stephen Miller's aggressive immigration policy has led to disastrous outcomes and criticism, forcing him to change course, an analyst explained on Tuesday.

The White House deputy chief of staff has had to develop a new strategy for the Trump administration's immigration policy, according to a new New York Times report and video featuring White House correspondent Zolan Kanno-Youngs.

Miller's different approach involves zeroing in on social services fraud and placing less emphasis on deportation raids. He recently joined Vice President JD Vance at a White House event on the anti-fraud task force centered on the administration's crackdown on immigrants who were abusing benefits and allegedly committing fraud, Kanno-Youngs reported.

"The people at this table are all united in absolute determination to stop this plague of fraud, criminality and abuse," Miller said at the event.

This move has been on Miller's mind all along, Kanno-Youngs explained.

"Miller has long tried to establish a link between immigrants and fraud, but there was a legitimate case of fraud in Minnesota that presented an ideal opportunity to ramp up these attacks," Kanno-Youngs said.

"However, the anti-fraud task force is also just one piece of a much broader effort that Stephen Miller is pursuing to make the lives of immigrants without legal status so uncomfortable that they end up leaving the country voluntarily," Kanno-Youngs explained. "This shift is largely the result of the political backlash that the administration faced after the deportation raids in Minneapolis. Stephen Miller is now focused on advancing policies that can target how immigrants access public housing."

Miller has also started questioning how immigrants use credit cards and has started working with different state officials, including Tennessee, to try and limit how immigrants access hospitals and social service agencies. In Texas, he's been asking how children of immigrants access public schools.

"These less visible policies are incredibly impactful," Kanno-Youngs added.

Seething MAGA base accuses Trump of 'betraying his biggest campaign promise’

Trump's hardline immigration zealots were seething and accusing President Donald Trump of betraying the core promise that got him elected, according to an Axios report published Monday.

A frustrated coalition of conservatives, led by immigration hawks from the Heritage Foundation and other GOP think tanks, is blasting the White House for softening its deportation rhetoric ahead of the midterms. They're furious that Trump appears to be caving to wealthy donors and big business lobbyists who want cheap labor over enforcement.

"The President has only gotten pressure in his face to tone down the enforcement," fumed Mike Howell of The Oversight Project. "A conscious decision was made to go after the worst first, which was a deviation from the central campaign promise of mass deportations."

"The people holding the signs on the floor, those are my people," Howell declared. "The people in the suites, those are not my people. That's who we're going up against."

The group, led by former head of ICE and Customs and Border Protection Mark Morgan, is demanding what they call "Phase 2" — a staggering one million deportations annually. They're convinced Trump is listening to the wrong advisors and claim Stephen Miller should be leading the effort, though the coalition hasn't met with him yet.

Only 350,000 ICE removals happened in fiscal 2025, compared to 271,400 under Biden. Trump's team boasts of "two million self-deportations," but ICE won't release its year-end report to Congress. Border Patrol refuses to share official figures either.

The White House denies any backtracking, but the deportation zealots don't buy it. They're circulating enforcement playbooks across Capitol Hill, determined to force Trump back on message before the base revolts.

"These are relationships that have been built over a decade or more," Morgan said. "We're trying to influence them not to back off, stay the course with what the president promised the American people."

Outrage grows after ICE tackles rape survivor after court hearing: 'This regime is evil'

Reactions were mounting on Monday as news surfaced about an incident involving two Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who tackled a rape survivor to the ground just moments after she testified in a New Jersey courtroom.

David J. Bier, Cato Institute Director of Immigration Studies, shared an excerpt from an Atlantic report on X about an incident last year involving a woman who had survived rape and told her story in court about her perpetrator and ex-boyfriend, who she was seeking a restraining order against after he put her in a chokehold and sexually assaulted her, causing her to lose consciousness. When she stepped outside the courthouse, she was suddenly tackled to the ground by two plainclothes ICE officers.

Several public figures and prominent voices online spoke out in response.

"Insane misogynist military cosplay," actor and activist Carrie Coon wrote on X.

"This regime is evil," Matt Kovach, economist at the Purdue Daniels School of Business, wrote on X.

"Mass deportations make us all less safe, as abusers and exploiters know that threats to call ICE will keep their victims silent," Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, wrote on X.

"Abolish ICE," Mehdi Hasan, founder and CEO of news outlet Zeteo, wrote on X.

'The world is watching': Analyst warns Trump against destroying American Dream ideals

Donald Trump could be judged harshly by the world if he breaks a promise at the heart of the American Dream, an analyst has claimed.

The president and his administration have cracked down hard on immigration in a way that could undermine the "credibility" of the country, Brent McKenzie argued. The Hill columnist considered the crackdown on immigration as a move that could shatter the American Dream in the eyes of the world.

"The process might be long and complicated, but immigrants who followed the rules would eventually find opportunity," McKenzie wrote. "The U.S. was not only a place where people could succeed; it also openly welcomed those willing to work, contribute and build a life. Increasingly, people outside the U.S. are beginning to wonder whether that promise still holds."

McKenzie went on to argue that the "cultural confidence" of the United States depends on immigration, and that the Trump administration is actively undermining the future of the country.

He added, "But recent policy decisions are testing that narrative. When lawful permanent residents are excluded from government programs designed to help small businesses grow, or when people deep in the legal immigration process are suddenly caught in policy pauses and reversals, the message is larger than any single rule.

"In recent years, that confidence has eroded. Immigration has become a central point of political conflict. Today, immigration is no longer just a policy debate. It has become a cultural and political dividing line. And for people watching from outside the U.S., that shift is impossible to miss.

"The question facing the U.S. today is not whether immigration policy should evolve. Every country revises its policies over time. The question is whether the larger promise that once defined the American experience still holds."

Trump's changes to immigration policy in the US could, McKenzie argues, change the tide in countries across the world. This, he believes, is the reason there is such a close eye on the president.

"How the U.S. answers that question will shape not only immigration policy but the country’s place in the world," he wrote. "If the U.S. wants the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs and builders to continue choosing America, it must do more than defend its borders.

"It must also defend the promise that’s drawn them here for generations. The world is watching to see whether that promise still stands."

Pam Bondi's Fox News appearance immediately backfires: 'Dumbest thing ever said'

The internet reacted with uproar on Friday after Attorney General Pam Bondi appeared on Fox News, saying the Trump administration has focused on "citizenship fraud."

Bondi spoke to Fox News about the Trump administration's immigration policies and the escalating "aggressive denaturalization efforts," prompting a number of responses.

"Being a citizen in our country is a privilege, not a right. And Donald Trump is going to have everyone in this country who deserves to be here who is a citizen," Bondi said.

Plenty of people had thoughts following Bondi's comments, rebuking her statements and calling out the administration.

"If true, get this disloyal anti-democracy moron on the first deportation boat for White Trash Island," former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann and podcast host wrote on X.

"What the f--- is that supposed to even mean? Of f------ course it's a right if you're a citizen. That's the dumbest f------ thing anyone has ever said on Fox, and there's some pretty dumb competition," writer and political commentator Kelly Scaletta wrote on X.

"Calling citizenship a 'privilege' kinda/sorta/definitely ignores how the Constitution works. If you’re a citizen, that's a protected right - full stop, not something a president gets to hand out or take away based on who they think 'deserves' it," operations team lead Stacey Wernick wrote on X.

"It literally is a right.. and you mean white people is who Trump wants," liberal commentator Rodger Williams wrote on X.

"Given the Admin's position on birthright citizenship, it's hard not to see this as a direct message to the Supreme Court," reporter and host Grant Hermes wrote on X.

"I envy the confidence stupid people have to just go on the news and say s--- like this," software engineer Alex Jewell wrote on X.

Bondi: "Being a citizen in our country is a privilege, not a right. And Donald Trump is going to have everyone in this country who deserves to be here who is a citizen." pic.twitter.com/UHSJL7xdT1
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) March 27, 2026

Grim warning as Supreme Court weighs letting Trump rewrite what it means to be American

President Donald Trump's team will throw their weight behind a Supreme Court immigration case, an analyst has suggested.

A case set to appear before the legal body on April 1 will hear whether the president's executive order restricting birthright citizenship can remain in effect. Scott Titshaw, a professor of law, and Stephen Yale-Loer, a retired professor of immigration law practice, suggested that an unconstitutional precedent could be set if the Supreme Court sides with Trump.

Trump signed the birthright citizenship restriction executive order on Jan. 20, 2025. The Legal Defense Fund sued the president shortly after the announcement was made.

Writing in The Hill, Titshaw and Yale-Loer argued the stability of birthright citizenship under the 14th Amendment had been called into question. The pair wrote, "The stakes could not be higher. If the court sides with Trump, the damage will ripple far beyond undocumented immigrants.

"It will affect legal visa holders, green-card holders and even U.S. citizens. It would also create an underclass of American-born children, some of whom would become stateless.

"For over 150 years, the Fourteenth Amendment has guaranteed that nearly everyone born on U.S. soil is a U.S. citizen. That guarantee, enshrined after the Civil War to extend citizenship to former slaves, has been a cornerstone of American identity. Trump’s order seeks to dismantle it by executive fiat."

The pair suggested the framing from the Trump administration on why a birthright citizenship ban has been acted on is insincere.

"The administration frames its order as a crackdown on illegal immigration," they wrote. "But the machinery it proposes would ensnare children of citizens, green card holders, and legal workers who built their lives here in good faith."

They also warned that it could create a "bureaucratic nightmare."

"For more than a century, birthright citizenship has provided a simple, stable rule that affirms a core American principle: the circumstances of one’s birth should not determine one’s place in the nation.

"If the Supreme Court allows that principle to be undone, the result will not be a tidier immigration system. It will be a more uncertain nation — one in which even children born on U.S. soil must prove, again and again, that they belong."

'Most painful, most awkward': GOP rep moans about 'messy' government standstill

A Republican lawmaker has criticized their own party for an ongoing disagreement with the Democratic Party.

Frustrated Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) said the back and forth over reopening the Department of Homeland Security is par for the course under President Donald Trump's administration. He told CNN, "We do it the hardest, most painful, most awkward, most drawn out miserable way, but eventually we get it done. This is a classic example of that."

The DHS began its partial shutdown six weeks ago following a partial funding lapse that is yet to be resolved. The US Senate has, as of today (March 27), voted to end the 40-day shutdown, so long as immigration enforcement is excluded from reopening. The deal now faces a vote in the House of Representatives.

Fellow GOP representatives were openly critical of how long the shutdown had gone on.

Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) said, "I mean, we've got to, for God's sake, we've got to open this piece of government up."

The bill set to be reviewed by the House does not feature reforms the GOP had pushed for, specifically increased funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

There is also an omission regarding Border Patrol, with money for the immigration team absent from the most recent proposal. Republican Party support is not at all guaranteed for the bill either, with House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole saying, "I don't even know what it is yet."

Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune, speaking from the chamber earlier Friday, added, "Trump should never have had to step in to rescue TSA workers and US air travel.

"We're here because, thanks to Democrats' determined refusal to reach an agreement, there will be no Homeland Security funding bill this year. Instead... Republicans funded the Department of Homeland Security piecemeal," Thune added. "That is not the way to fund the department."

JD Vance drops ominous message for Americans: ‘Suffering is going to get a lot worse’

Vice President JD Vance had a grim comment on Tuesday amid the looming five-week government shutdown as time was running out on funding SNAP benefits.

A reporter asked Vance about the mounting concerns that an estimated 42 million Americans could lose their benefits and go hungry, while the federal government has invested billions in the military and law enforcement.

"If you go back to previous government shutdowns, what has happened is that sometimes the president has tried to make the shutdown as painful as possible on the American people," Vance said. "I give the president of the United States great credit, and the entire team, for trying to make this as painless as possible."

Vance praised President Donald Trump and the administration, while claiming Democrats were solely to blame for the stalemate impacting American voters.

"The unfortunate reality, and we're starting to see this with our aviation industry, we're going to find out the hard way with SNAP benefits," Vance said. "The American people are already suffering, and the suffering is going to get a lot worse. Not because the president of the United States has failed to make the shutdown painless, he's tried to do everything that he can to make it as un-painless as possible. The reason that pain is coming and the reason it's building is because we're not passing a clean bill to reopen the government."

Senate Republicans were planning to propose a solution with Democrats over funding the Department of Homeland Security and end the partial shutdown, according to reports on Tuesday. It's unclear if Senate Democrats would agree to the proposal.

Democrats have demanded that immigration raids require judicial warrants, and Sen. John Hoeven (R-SD) told The New York Times that the suggested compromise would not include this concession.

JD Vance to Americans: "The suffering is going to get a lot worse." @atrupar (2025)pic.twitter.com/RwlAoQX4tc
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) March 24, 2026

'Sick to my stomach': Hit show The Pitt applauded as it takes direct aim at ICE

Viewers of HBO's hit hospital drama The Pitt are full of praise as the show took on Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in its Thursday episode.

The show, which has picked up five Emmy Awards and 13 nominations, featured ICE agents as a crucial plot point in episode, as they bring in a suspiciously injured woman detainee for treatment.

As the agents — one masked — stand in the emergency room, multiple patients and staff members flee in fear. A nurse is then detained as he tries to protect the original detainee.

Dr. Robby, played by Noah Wyle, lashes out. “Patients come in here for help, because they’re either sick or they’re injured,” he angrily tells an agent. “Documented or undocumented, they have a right to emergency care.”

The political episode was applauded by viewers.

One, who claimed to be a student doctor, took to X and wrote, "I created this account to share my perspective on the show as a medical student. The ICE storyline? That’s real.

"I’ve seen it with my own eyes, and that hurt. Inhumane treatment of immigrants. Violence against those who try to help. Fear of being detained. The Pitt got it right."

Another user suggested that, for non-Americans watching the show, The Pitt only just scratches the surface of public opinion on ICE agents. "For any non-Americans surprised at the behavior of the ICE agents I can assure you they're worse in real life," they wrote.

"Like that whole ordeal was harrowing but it's only a fraction of the things that those monsters are capable of and have done and will continue to do."

A third fan of the show added, "I haven’t caught up with The Pitt but I feel sick to my stomach seeing that scene."

Slate writer David Mack suggested the show had referenced Donald Trump's administration throughout the season, without even mentioning the president's name. He wrote, "Donald Trump may not be mentioned by name in The Pitt, but throughout this season in particular, it’s clear the show takes place in his shadow.

"Episode 11, though, is where our current politics manifest themselves most undeniably in a scene that directly evokes the chaos and brutality we’ve witnessed from federal agents in states across the country."

Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, show creator R. Scott Gemmill confirmed the episode had been written and recorded shortly before the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

"We looked at what’s going on, and we don’t try to prophesize; we just naturally extrapolate what could happen," he said. "And that happened with the measles case. It happened with the cyberattack, and it’s happened with ICE. Things unfortunately have gotten much more severe with that than what we had ever imagined."

Hero who fought for US dies in 'highly unusual' circumstances hours after ICE arrest

A non-profit organization is calling for an investigation into the events leading to the death of an asylum seeker who fought with U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Mohommad Nazeer Paktyawal, 41, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in front of his family and taken into custody in Dallas, Texas. The father-of-six had been preparing for the school run with his children when he was detained by officers.

Just 24 hours later, the family was told Paktyawal, who had served as an Afghan special forces soldier for more than a decade and fought side-by-side with the US Army Special Forces, had died.

A statement issued by the non-profit organization, AfghanEvac, has called for an investigation into the death, as they say the healthy 41-year-old should not have fallen ill and died so suddenly. Their statement read, "The cause of death is unknown. But one fact is clear: it is not normal for a healthy 41-year-old man to die within a day of being taken into government custody.

"Mr. Paktyawal survived our war in Afghanistan and trusted the United States enough to rebuild his life here. His family deserves answers. The American public deserves answers. The U.S. servicemembers who fought alongside Afghan partners deserve answers.

"AfghanEvac is calling for an immediate and transparent investigation into the circumstances of his detention, medical care, and death, including oversight by the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General and Congress.

"The United States made a promise to the Afghans who stood with us. Honoring that promise requires transparency, accountability, and dignity in how they are treated here at home."

Further information issued by AfghanEvac confirms the veteran was admitted to Parkland Hospital in Dallas at around 11:45pm on March 13. The family was informed he was still alive at 8 a.m. the following day, but was then told of Nazeer's death on March 14 at 12 p.m.

"It is highly unusual for an otherwise healthy 41-year-old man to die less than 24 hours after being taken into government custody," AfghanEvac noted. "His family deserves answers."

A statement from the family stated, "Since arriving in America, Nazeer focused on providing for his family. He worked, supported his children, and tried to build a peaceful life after everything our family had been through. The morning he was taken away, he was getting ready to drive his children to school.

"His children watched as he was surrounded and taken away. That moment will stay with them forever. Later that night we were told he had been taken to the hospital. The next morning we were told that he had died. We still cannot understand how this happened. He was only 41 years old and was a strong and healthy man. His children keep asking when their father will come home."