The mainstream media has long insisted that Trump’s immigration plans were “impossible” and “unrealistic.” Well, it turns out that securing the border wasn’t just possible—it was so successful that the administration has already moved on to phase two: mass deportations. Who’s laughing now?

In just six weeks, the Trump administration has slashed illegal border crossings by over 95%, effectively ending the crisis that plagued the southern border during the Biden years. With operational control largely achieved, Vice President JD Vance says they’re now shifting focus to removing those who entered illegally during the previous administration.

From ‘Fox News’:
Vice President JD Vance said he expects deportation numbers to rise as the Trump administration shifts from gaining operational control of the southern border to ramping up efforts to remove illegal migrants from the country…

“You have immigration detention facilities that were underfunded,” he said. “You have ICE, which does most of the actual deportations, that was radically underfunded, really sort of in some ways destroyed by the Biden administration. We’re building that capacity up.”

From Border Control to Spring Cleaning

The results speak for themselves. According to data released by ICE officials, agents made 32,809 arrests between January 20 and March 10—that’s approximately 656 arrests per day. For comparison, under President Biden, ICE was averaging just 255 arrests daily.

If you’re doing the math at home, that’s more than triple the previous rate. At this pace, the administration could potentially arrest nearly one million illegal immigrants over a four-year term. That’s a far cry from the Biden administration’s approach, which The Guardian reports was significantly more selective about who they targeted for removal.

Old Tools, New Tricks

Perhaps the most delicious irony in all this is how the Trump administration is repurposing Biden-era tools for completely opposite purposes. Remember the controversial CBP One app? Under Biden, it was used to facilitate entry for asylum seekers. Now, it’s being used to help illegal immigrants self-deport.

“Do you remember that?” Vance asked with a hint of amusement. “It actually facilitated illegal entry under the Biden administration. We’re repurposing it to facilitate self-deportation.”

This creativity extends to the public messaging campaign led by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, who has been blunt in her advice to those in the country illegally: leave now, on your own terms, before ICE comes knocking.

“We’re going to encourage a lot of people to do is we don’t have to come and knock on your door and send you home. We’re going to do that, of course. But before that happens, why don’t you get on a plane and go home yourself?” Vance explained.

It’s an all-of-the-above approach that combines enforcement with incentives for voluntary compliance—something the previous administration never seemed interested in attempting. When was the last time you saw government officials come up with such practical solutions to complex problems?

Growing Pains of Success

Success, however, brings its own challenges. With detention facilities already at capacity—currently holding 47,600 detainees according to Newsweek—the administration is working with other federal agencies to expand capacity.

According to The Guardian, the administration is coordinating with the Marshals Service, Department of Defense, and Federal Bureau of Prisons to increase bed space while they await additional resources from Congress.

Of the migrants arrested so far, Newsweek reports that 14,111 have prior criminal convictions, while 9,980 face pending criminal charges. Additionally, officials report that 1,555 of those arrested were suspected gang members, and 39 were known or suspected terrorists—exactly the “bad hombres” Trump promised to target during his campaign.

Critics argue that the administration is casting too wide a net, with The Guardian reporting that between January and February, there was a 221% increase in the detention of immigrants with no criminal convictions. But administration officials maintain that entering the country illegally is itself a violation of law—a point White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt emphasized when she stated that all undocumented migrants are considered criminals “because they illegally broke our nation’s laws.”

Isn’t it refreshing to have an administration that treats breaking the law as, well, breaking the law?

Key Takeaways:

• Vice President Vance vowed deportations of illegals will rise as Trump ramps up his immigration reform.
• The Trump administration has cut illegal border crossings by over 95%.
• Creative approaches include repurposing the CBP One app for self-deportation.

Sources: Fox News, The Guardian, Newsweek