Since the beginning of June, masked agents from the immigration authority ICE have apprehended nearly 2,800 undocumented migrants in Los Angeles, often at workplaces such as factories, nail salons, and construction sites. This has led to massive street protests, and Trump sent the National Guard and Marine Corps soldiers to the city.
Similar raids are expected to become more common. In the economic package that Trump has dubbed the "Big beautiful bill", which was passed by Congress in early July, an amount equivalent to over 1,600 billion kronor is being invested in strengthening the border and increasing the number of deportations.
ICE is receiving the largest share of the sum – approximately 725 billion kronor over four years.
This will fundamentally change how ICE works, says Ariel Ruiz Soto, an analyst at the independent think tank Migration Policy Institute.
Larger than the FBI's budget
The agency's budget will thus be larger than that of nine other federal police authorities combined, including the FBI. American media have noted that ICE's budget will now also be larger than the defense budgets of most countries.
The investment is expected to particularly affect states and cities governed by Democrats, including Los Angeles, according to Ariel Ruiz Soto:
Trump has been clear that he wants to take a stand against states that do not cooperate with ICE and are considered to be protecting undocumented migrants.
ICE is expected to use the budget increase to double the number of places in the USA's migrant detention centers. A taste of what is to come is "Alligator Alcatraz", a new, hastily constructed prison for migrants on an abandoned airfield in Florida's swamplands.
This will make it possible for ICE to hold more people for longer periods, says Ariel Ruiz Soto.
Hiring 10,000 new agents
ICE will also hire 10,000 new agents – an increase of 50 percent – and deport up to one million people per year.
But quickly finding so many new agents will be a challenge, despite ICE offering high salaries and professional benefits, according to Ariel Ruiz Soto:
It may become more difficult for ICE to retain its personnel and attract new ones, especially considering the significant resistance to the agency in recent months.
The government has said it prioritizes criminal migrants. But of those who have been deported since Trump became president, 61 percent are non-criminal, according to an analysis by the Washington Post.
Critics of ICE's budget increase argue that the agency's new resources, and the pressure to deport many migrants, risk undermining the rule of law and leading to more raids on workplaces.
The majority of those who are deported have not committed any other crime than entering the country without papers, says Ariel Ruiz Soto.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, ICE, is a US federal police authority led by Todd Lyons. ICE's task is to protect the US from cross-border crime and illegal immigration, and was founded in 2003 in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. Unlike the US Border Patrol, ICE operates within the country, often after people have already entered. The view of ICE is politicized in the US. One of Donald Trump's campaign promises was to significantly increase the number of deportations of undocumented migrants. 42 percent of Americans have a positive view of ICE – a decrease of eight percentage points since February, according to a survey by YouGov. Among Republicans, however, support has increased by nine percentage points during the period.
(TT)
