Armed with a $75 billion windfall from the one "big, beautiful bill," the Department of Homeland Security is preparing for a surge in Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations after a massive hiring spike, the Washington Examiner reported Monday.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Friday that the agency has received more than 175,000 applications for ICE officer positions and that the first wave of 1,200 to 1,500 new agents has been deployed to the field as part of the "Defend the Homeland" recruitment drive.
Noem added that "thousands more" will be deployed in the coming weeks.
DHS officials said the influx of funds and new personnel will enable a "surge" in ICE activities nationwide, with an emphasis on identifying, arresting, and deporting criminal illegal aliens.
"We want to really surge those arrest numbers, especially given that [thanks to the] 'one big, beautiful bill,' we've received funding to do it," DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin said Sunday, according to the report. "We're going to be making great progress."
McLaughlin said ICE’s efforts have resulted in roughly 500,000 deportations so far, according to the Examiner.
Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons announced last week that New York City will be the next target for heightened ICE operations.
"You will see an increase in ICE arrests because there are so many criminal illegal aliens that have been released in New York specifically, and especially have been harbored in New York for the lack of cooperation there in New York City," Lyons said Wednesday.
Mark Swanson ✉
Mark Swanson, a Newsmax writer and editor, has nearly three decades of experience covering news, culture and politics.
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