An ICE agent monitors hundreds of asylum seekers being processed as they enter the Jacob Javits Federal Building in New York City on June 6, 2023.
David Dee Delgado | David Dee DelgadoGetty Images
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials are planning a major enforcement operation that will target immigrants in the days after the president-elect takes office Donald TrumpThat’s according to a document reviewed by NBC News and a person familiar with the matter.
Multiple locations in Chicago will be targeted, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the operation.
The operation is expected to begin as early as Tuesday and end next Monday, according to the document, but the date could change.
ICE officials referred NBC News to the Trump transition team for comment, and The transition team did not respond. exist Exclusive interview In an interview with NBC News’ Kristen Welker on Saturday, Trump declined to reveal any details about the operation but said the mass deportations would come “very early, “Very soon” begins.
“We’re ready and it’s about to begin,” he said. “We have to get the criminals who are here illegally out of our country.”
A briefing for agents planning to participate in the operation, known as “Operation Safeguard,” is planned for Friday afternoon in Chicago, the document said. It also said the operation would involve agents who have been asked to volunteer their services, and the number of agents volunteering exceeds demand.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that the operation was expected to take place in Chicago.
It is also possible to conduct business in other cities. Before NBC News reviewed the documents, several sources familiar with the plan said major metropolitan areas that could see early enforcement action include Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Denver and Chicago.
As a candidate, Trump promised to carry out the largest deportations in U.S. history. 2022 federal estimates say as many as 11 million Undocumented immigrants live in the United States, but the exact number is currently unknown.
The American Immigration Council, a pro-immigration group, estimates it could cost At least US$315 billion Deport them all. Costs aside, experts warn mass deportations could lead to higher prices for some U.S. goods federal government estimates 40% of agricultural workers are undocumented immigrants.
ICE currently has Budget gap $230 million And there are no funds to implement Trump’s plan on a broad, long-term basis. Congress must first appropriate additional funding for law enforcement operations and detention facilities.
When immigrants are arrested, they are detained before being deported. According to ICE’s website, there are currently no beds available at its detention facility in Chicago.
Tom Homan, Trump’s incoming border czar, has said he wants at least 100,000 detention beds across the United States; currently, there are about 34,000 in the United States. The highest number of deportations in a single year during Trump’s first term was 267,000 in fiscal year 2019.
Biden administration expel more people That’s higher than the annual growth rate during the first Trump administration’s first term. The highest number of deportations in the United States in a single year is 438,000 in fiscal year 2013 During the Obama administration.
Trump’s apparent plans to target Democratic-run cities are also likely to face political pushback. Responding to reports that the new administration may initiate deportations in Chicago, Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said on Friday that he would protect immigrants if they are illegally arrested.
“We have laws that protect undocumented people,” Pritzker said. “I will make sure the law is followed. I am concerned that the Trump administration and his lackeys will not follow the law.”
homan told NBC News The new government is willing to shoulder the financial costs of political battles and mass evictions. “I think mass deportations and the consequences of mass deportations are more important to this country than anything else,” he said. “I will not put a price on our national security.”
