The US president has directed ICE agents to prioritize cities like Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago, which are largely Democratic strongholds.
Following riots in Los Angeles, President Trump has instructed federal agents to significantly increase the deportation of undocumented immigrants from cities controlled by Democrats.
In a recent post on Truth Social, Trump ordered Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to pursue what he called “the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History.”
He stated that, “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,”
Trump alleges that Democrats are using undocumented migrants to “expand their Voter Base, cheat in Elections, and grow the Welfare State, robbing good paying Jobs and Benefits from Hardworking American Citizens.”
Many Democratic strongholds, like Los Angeles and Chicago, limit their cooperation with federal immigration authorities via sanctuary policies, which Trump and other Republicans have long opposed.
California Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass have criticized Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard and active-duty Marines to help suppress the unrest, which began following ICE raids last week. Newsom has challenged the legality of the move and has sued Trump and the Pentagon.
The governor stated, “Donald Trump is creating fear and terror by failing to adhere to the US Constitution and overstepping his authority,”
A curfew has been implemented in parts of downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday, after several days of looting, vandalism, and confrontations with police.
During his campaign, Trump promised to reverse what he described as “open-border” policies enacted by his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, during whose term there was a surge of migrants crossing the border with Mexico.
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