Trump administration will launch raids on illegal immigrants on day one, US media report

Raids aimed at arresting and deporting migrants living in the United States without authorization are expected to begin on the first full day of the new Trump administration, US media report.

The operations – threatened by Donald Trump’s “border czar”, Tom Homan – could begin as early as Tuesday in Chicago, a city with a large migrant population, say the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

Trump said he would oversee the largest deportation program in U.S. history.

In an interview with Fox News this week, Homan promised a “big raid” across the country. He already said Chicago will be “ground zero” for mass deportations.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency constantly deports illegal immigrants. However, the operation he is expected to launch after Trump’s inauguration on Monday is expected to target so-called “sanctuary” cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

Along with Chicago, New York and Los Angeles are among many American cities that have adopted “sanctuary” policies.

“On January 21st, you’re going to be searching your city for a lot of ICE agents looking for criminals and gang members,” Homan said at a Republican rally in Chicago last month. “Count on it. It will happen.”

New York, Los Angeles, Denver and Miami are also expected to be targets of raids, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing unnamed sources close to the project.

Under Democratic President Joe Biden, ICE generally prioritized arresting illegal immigrants who were serious criminals, had recently crossed the border or posed a threat to national security.

While Trump’s team has indicated it will start with migrants who have committed crimes, all illegal immigrants — including those who have lived and worked in the United States for many years and have no prior criminals – are more likely to be arrested and deported.

Immigration raids on construction sites where undocumented migrants are often employed are also expected to resume, after being halted by the Biden administration, according to CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.

In anticipation of an expected tightening of U.S. policy, more migrant farmworkers have sought advice on how to deal with immigration officials and appoint temporary guardians for their children.

“The administration has not yet been sworn in, but people are already afraid,” Sarait Martinez, executive director of the Centro Binacional para el Desarrollo Indígena Oaxaqueño, which supports Mexican agricultural workers in California.

In addition to pledging to deport millions of illegal migrants and threatening workplace searches, some reports suggest Trump may also abandon a long-standing policy that bars churches from being arrested by ICE..

However, the upcoming searches are likely to pose significant challenges for officials, with limited custody space to hold those detained.

Meanwhile, the Laken Riley Act – named after a student murdered last year in Georgia by a Venezuelan previously arrested for shoplifting – is expected to be passed by US lawmakers next week.

The proposed legislation will require the federal government to detain migrants living in the United States illegally on suspicion of criminal activity, even if they are not charged with any crime.