President Trump’s deportation blitz is picking up steam — along with criticism from Democrats that the administration’s actions will harm communities and hurt the economy without solving the border crisis.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and a small handful of other federal agencies have conducted raids over the past few days which led to the arrest of more than 2,000 people, including almost 1,000 on Sunday alone, ICE said.
Democrats accuse Trump of seeking petty political revenge by launching the deportation raids in deep blue cities like Chicago, where he frequently clashes with Democratic officials.
“These unwarranted raids have not only targeted hardworking individuals but, alarmingly, have also wrongfully targeted U.S. citizens and veterans,” said Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.), head of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
“Such actions sow fear, disrupt families, destabilize local economies, and undermine public trust,” he added.
Tom Homan, Trump’s “border czar” who was in Chicago on Sunday to oversee the deportation operations, is pushing back on those criticisms. He said the administration is merely upholding the law — one he said has been ignored in Washington for too long.
“President Trump’s gonna secure the border as promised to the American people and we’re gonna enforce immigration laws. That’s what we’re gonna do — without apology,” Homan told reporters in Washington on Monday. “We’re on board, we’re gonna go forward [and] you’re gonna see it get a hell of a lot bigger in the near future.”
The clash presents an early test for both parties in the high-stakes messaging battle over inflation, public safety and how immigration affects both — a debate that’s sure to carry into the 2026 midterm elections and beyond.
Trump had placed many of the nation’s ills at the feet of immigrants, saying those living in America illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country.” He accused them of driving up crime rates and stealing American jobs.
Trump last week defended the strategy, saying his administration is targeting only those with serious criminal backgrounds.
“These are murderers,” he said Friday during a stop in North Carolina. “These are people that have been as bad as you get.”
Yet the effort has sparked an outcry from Democrats, who are warning of the residual effects on communities of all sizes if immigrants — even those in the country legally — are living in fear of raids at work, at school or elsewhere.
“Children and families should be able to go to school, seek healthcare, and worship their God without fear of an ICE raid,” Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) posted on X. “This policy does nothing to curtail the root causes of illegal immigration, but it will harm families, hurt local economies, and create mass chaos.”
There are no signs that Trump’s efforts will slow down. According to reports this week, the president has been disappointed with the pace of arrests so far. And the White House is pressing federal law enforcers to get more aggressive in their raids and apprehensions, setting a new, higher daily quota for ICE field offices around the country.
The aggressive nature of the operations marks a stark contrast to the policies of the Biden administration, which in most cases had avoided deporting large numbers of undocumented immigrants living in the country.
Biden also allowed hundreds of thousands more migrants to seek asylum and refuge in the U.S. while their claims were adjudicated, efforts the Trump administration is seeking to unwind.
Democrats and immigrant rights advocates worry that the shift towards tougher enforcement under Trump will inevitably result in the arrest of people who have committed no crimes, or those living in the country legally.
They’re accusing Trump of playing politics by targeting the raids in cities — most of them controlled by Democrats — which have shown legal leniency towards immigrants, even those in the country illegally.
“There’s no question that the Trump administration is intentionally targeting immigration enforcement actions … in cities and states that have taken proactive steps to protect immigrants from the federal government,” Nayna Gupta, policy director at the American Immigration Council, said Monday.
Chicago, for instance, is a “sanctuary city” that has frequently been the subject of attacks from Trump and other Republicans.
Illinois Democratic Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth wasted no time hammering the raids in the Windy City, warning that Trump’s “mass deportation actions” risk snaring Dreamers, military veterans and others who have gained legal footing in the country.
In New Jersey, Democrats are also up in arms this week after an ICE raid on a Newark business, which reportedly led to the arrest of three workers in the country illegally.
“Actions like this one sow fear in all of our communities — and our broken immigration system requires solutions, not fear tactics,” New Jersey Sens. Cory Booker (D) and Andy Kim (D) said in a joint statement.
The Democratic protests, however, are having no noticeable effect on Trump’s policies. And as the fight evolves, administration officials are only digging in, arguing that the federal law enforcers conducting the raids are being careful not to abuse their authority.
“These men and women are professional, highest detention standards in industry,” Homan said Monday.
“We take care of these people,” he added. “But we’re gonna enforce the law and we’re not gonna apologize for doing it.”
Mychael Schnell and Rebecca Beitsch contributed reporting.
