
President Donald Trump’s administration has expanded its immigration enforcement efforts by authorizing thousands of federal agents to assist in tracking and arresting illegal immigrants across the country. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman issued a directive allowing several Justice Department agencies to support immigration operations.
The directive grants authority to the U.S. Marshals, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Bureau of Prisons. These agencies, which typically handle other federal responsibilities, will now assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement in locating and detaining individuals who entered the country illegally.
Is this a much better use of @ATFHQ agents?@realDonaldTrump is trying to amass a larger force of law-enforcement officials to carry out deportations by granting agents across the federal government the same powers as immigration officershttps://t.co/GC35Igvek7
— John R Lott Jr. (@JohnRLottJr) January 23, 2025
Huffman stated that the expanded enforcement powers are an essential step in meeting Trump’s commitment to strengthen border security. She pointed out that the previous administration’s policies failed to provide the necessary tools to curb illegal immigration effectively.
The Trump administration has authorized the DEA, ATF and the US Marshals to begin making immigration arrests and processing deportations, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.
The move gives those federal agents the same authority as those with Homeland Security… pic.twitter.com/nmYYQHgAdT
— Crime In NYC (@CrimeInNYC) January 24, 2025
This move could bring an additional 31,000 officers into immigration enforcement operations, significantly increasing the manpower available to ICE and Border Patrol, which currently have a combined force of around 40,000 agents.
🚨 BREAKING:
President Trump has now given the ATF, DEA, and U.S. Marshals Service the ability to arrest illegals, per WSJ..
This instantly added almost TEN THOUSAND new federal agents to the deportation squad…
They’re ALL going back ! pic.twitter.com/eJRRoQitdK
— Viktorija (@TrumpGirl44) January 25, 2025
Following this directive, federal agents have carried out large-scale operations in multiple cities, resulting in the arrests of hundreds of illegal immigrants, including individuals with criminal backgrounds and gang affiliations. Reports indicate that recent raids have been focused on areas with high concentrations of illegal residents.
Trump grants deportation powers to ATF, DEA, and U.S. Marshals! 🇺🇸 Agencies tackling drugs and weapons now stepping into immigration enforcement. The border fight just leveled up. pic.twitter.com/Aa2HxECT3r
— TexanonX™ (@TexanonX) January 23, 2025
The administration continues to push forward with additional immigration measures, with plans to further expand enforcement efforts in the coming months.
🚨Update: Trump empowers all Justice Department agents to deport illegal migrants — WSJ. The newspaper noted that DEA and ATF employees had not been involved in immigration enforcement, except where there are gun-related or drug-trafficking crimes!! pic.twitter.com/dSr4bu8OqB
— US Homeland Security News (@defense_civil25) January 23, 2025