The head of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) unit in charge of deportations has recently ordered all officers to take action against all illegal aliens they may cross paths with, regardless of whether they have criminal histories or not. This is what they call enforcing the law no matter what the crybabies will say. The law may be harsh to some, but it is the law.
In a February memo, Matthew Albence, a career official who heads the Enforcement and Removal Operations division of ICE, informed his 5,700 deportation officers that, "effective immediately, ERO officers will take enforcement action against all removable aliens encountered in the course of their duties." YES!
President Donald Trump's administration, including Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, has been clear in promising to ramp up immigration enforcement because they all pose a public safety threat. Indeed, Kelly, to whom Albence ultimately reports, had seemed to suggest a degree of discretion when he told the agencies under his command earlier this year that immigration officers "may" initiate enforcement actions against any undocumented person they encountered. That guidance was issued just a day before Albence sent the memo to his staff.
A spokesman with ICE said Albence's directive did not represent a break with Kelly's stated aims, and was consistent with current agency policies.
"The memo directly supports the directions handed down in the executive orders and mirrors the language ICE consistently uses to describe its enforcement posture," the spokeswoman, Sarah Rodriguez, said in a statement. "As Secretary Kelly and Acting Director [of ICE] Homan have stated repeatedly, ICE prioritizes the arrest and removal of national security and public safety threats; however, no class or category of alien in the United States is exempt from arrest or removal."
However, Sarah Saldaña, who retired in January as head of ICE for the Obama administration, said the wording in the memo would have real consequences for undocumented immigrants.
"When you use the word 'will' instead of 'may' you are taking it a step further," said Saldaña. "This is an important directive and people at ERO are bound by this directive unless someone above Matt Albence comes back and says, ‘You went too far.' I don't think you are going to find that person in this administration."
Since 2008, Congress had traditionally used its annual spending bill to instruct the secretary of homeland security to prioritize the deportation of convicted immigrants based on the severity of their crimes, but that language was left out of this year's bill, helping to pave the way for broader enforcement and safety to all legal residents.
In recent months, the number of illegal aliens arrested who are considered to have committed small crimes has risen. Under the law, by merely being here illegally is already a civil violation, which could lead to more criminal offenses. All big time criminals started in their careers committing petty crimes until they believe they can get away with it.
Between February and May, the Trump administration arrested, on average, 108 undocumented immigrants a day with varying degrees of criminal record, an uptick of some 150 percent from the same time period a year ago.
"Why do you think we got 11 million to 12 million people in this country [illegally] now?" Homan asked White House reporters. "Because there has been this notion that if you get by the Border Patrol, if you get in the United States, if you have a U.S. citizen kid, then no one is looking for you. But those days are over."
In a February memo, Matthew Albence, a career official who heads the Enforcement and Removal Operations division of ICE, informed his 5,700 deportation officers that, "effective immediately, ERO officers will take enforcement action against all removable aliens encountered in the course of their duties." YES!
President Donald Trump's administration, including Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly, has been clear in promising to ramp up immigration enforcement because they all pose a public safety threat. Indeed, Kelly, to whom Albence ultimately reports, had seemed to suggest a degree of discretion when he told the agencies under his command earlier this year that immigration officers "may" initiate enforcement actions against any undocumented person they encountered. That guidance was issued just a day before Albence sent the memo to his staff.
A spokesman with ICE said Albence's directive did not represent a break with Kelly's stated aims, and was consistent with current agency policies.
"The memo directly supports the directions handed down in the executive orders and mirrors the language ICE consistently uses to describe its enforcement posture," the spokeswoman, Sarah Rodriguez, said in a statement. "As Secretary Kelly and Acting Director [of ICE] Homan have stated repeatedly, ICE prioritizes the arrest and removal of national security and public safety threats; however, no class or category of alien in the United States is exempt from arrest or removal."
However, Sarah Saldaña, who retired in January as head of ICE for the Obama administration, said the wording in the memo would have real consequences for undocumented immigrants.
"When you use the word 'will' instead of 'may' you are taking it a step further," said Saldaña. "This is an important directive and people at ERO are bound by this directive unless someone above Matt Albence comes back and says, ‘You went too far.' I don't think you are going to find that person in this administration."
Since 2008, Congress had traditionally used its annual spending bill to instruct the secretary of homeland security to prioritize the deportation of convicted immigrants based on the severity of their crimes, but that language was left out of this year's bill, helping to pave the way for broader enforcement and safety to all legal residents.
In recent months, the number of illegal aliens arrested who are considered to have committed small crimes has risen. Under the law, by merely being here illegally is already a civil violation, which could lead to more criminal offenses. All big time criminals started in their careers committing petty crimes until they believe they can get away with it.
Between February and May, the Trump administration arrested, on average, 108 undocumented immigrants a day with varying degrees of criminal record, an uptick of some 150 percent from the same time period a year ago.
"Why do you think we got 11 million to 12 million people in this country [illegally] now?" Homan asked White House reporters. "Because there has been this notion that if you get by the Border Patrol, if you get in the United States, if you have a U.S. citizen kid, then no one is looking for you. But those days are over."