Trump reaffirms ICE arrest policy after confusing guidance sparks alarm among agents
The Trump administration denied reports Saturday evening that Immigration and Customs Enforcement had temporarily instructed agents to limit arrests to illegal immigrants with criminal records.
The clarification comes as immigration enforcement remains a central pillar of President Donald Trump’s agenda. The administration has promised an aggressive crackdown on illegal immigration and expanded deportations, and officials said that effort has not been scaled back.
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President Donald Trump has made immigration enforcement a central pillar of his administration, promising a sweeping crackdown on illegal immigration and expanded deportations. (David Peinado/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin, who spoke with Trump and nine ICE and Department of Homeland Security sources, reported that verbal guidance instructing field offices to prioritize the "worst first" was distributed nationwide earlier this week.
The guidance alarmed some ICE agents, who described it as shocking and frustrating, Melugin wrote on X.
Sources later said the confusion stemmed from internal conversations about prioritizing the most serious offenders and that the directive was the result of a "miscommunication," rather than a formal change in policy.
"There is no change in immigration enforcement policy," Melugin wrote on X.
New guidance was sent to ICE field offices Saturday evening to reaffirm that the administration’s enforcement policy had not changed, according to the sources.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents conduct enforcement operations nationwide as the Trump administration pledges to expand arrests and deportations of illegal immigrants. (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg/Getty Images)
Trump told Fox News that ICE can still arrest and deport anyone who is in the country illegally.
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ICE agents will also continue arresting illegal immigrants without additional criminal histories, including "collaterals," or individuals encountered during an operation targeting someone else.
The sources said the administration’s broader immigration enforcement agenda remains in place.
Amanda Macias covers the intersection of business, economics and politics, with a focus on how policy decisions shape markets, businesses and American workers.
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