In an interview with TIME magazine published on Thursday, President-elect Donald Trump promised to use the U.S. military to its full legal capacity to deport record numbers of illegal immigrants.
Trump described migrants as dangerous criminals, labeling their arrival an invasion. Despite U.S. laws restricting military involvement in domestic law enforcement, he pledged to use the National Guard for a mass crackdown on both legal and illegal immigration. Additionally, he plans to fund mass deportations by declaring a national emergency to unlock resources.
The National Guard has assisted the Border Patrol at the Mexico border but has not been involved in making immigration arrests. Trump’s new border czar, Tom Homan, stated on Fox News that he would like the military to provide support in areas like transportation, intelligence, and targeting, while immigration officers will handle the arrests.
In an interview with NBC News, Trump stated that he plans to deport all illegal immigrants in the US this term. The Department of Homeland Security reported that, in January 2022, there were around 11 million illegal immigrants in the US.
During his presidency from 2017-2021, Trump faced challenges in ramping up deportations, with President Joe Biden deporting more in 2023 than Trump did in any of his years. However, If Trump’s plan succeeds, it could severely impact millions of businesses dependent on immigrant workers, particularly in agriculture.
Deporting all immigrants lacking legal status would also cost a trillion dollars over a span of more than ten years, according to the pro-immigration American Immigration Council.
Moreover, a Reuters/Ipsos poll revealed that Americans’ sentiments toward immigrants residing in the U.S. without legal status had marginally toughened since the commencement of Trump’s initial term in 2017.
