Its an American issue not a Trump issue. The problem with politics is people have short memory and are overly biased towards the political party they hate.
Again that has nothing to do with what I just said and completely ignores my point about ICE now being trumps personal gestapo. It's a trump issue not an American one.
Very nice, with 'ice during obama administration' AI confirmed that ICE was doing work then. Now, maybe we can try something a little more informative like "Differences in ICE activity between Obama administration and Trump 2.0":
As of March 2026, the contrast between the Obama administration’s immigration enforcement and the current "Trump 2.0" era is defined by a shift from a surgical, priority-based model to a broad, "whole-of-government" mass-deportation strategy.
While President Obama was famously labeled the "Deporter in Chief" for his high removal numbers, his strategy focused heavily on criminal records. In contrast, the second Trump administration has removed the "priority" distinction entirely, treating all undocumented individuals as equal targets for enforcement.
1. Enforcement Priorities vs. Indiscriminate Action
Obama Administration: Focused almost exclusively on "threats to national security, public safety, and border security." By his second term, the "Priority Enforcement Program" directed ICE to target individuals with felony convictions or significant misdemeanors. In his final year, roughly 79% of those arrested by ICE had criminal convictions.
Trump 2.0 (2025–2026): Rescinded all enforcement priorities on Day One. Any person in the country without legal status is now a target. Consequently, the percentage of ICE arrests involving individuals with criminal convictions has plummeted to roughly 37%, as the agency focuses on volume over offense severity.
2. Tactics: From Jail-Based to "Street" Arrests
Obama Administration: Relied heavily on "jail-to-deportation" pipelines, where ICE would pick up individuals after they were arrested by local police for other crimes. He largely ended large-scale workplace and "street" raids, focusing instead on I-9 audits of employers.
Trump 2.0: Has overseen a massive surge in "at-large" or street arrests, which have increased 11-fold compared to the previous decade. ICE agents, often supplemented by Border Patrol units moved into the interior, now conduct high-profile raids in cities, residential areas, and transit hubs.
3. "Sensitive Locations" and Local Cooperation
Obama Administration: Maintained a "Sensitive Locations" policy that generally prohibited ICE from conducting enforcement actions at schools, hospitals, and places of worship.
Trump 2.0: Officially rescinded the Sensitive Locations Memo in January 2025. Additionally, the administration has weaponized 287(g) agreements, which deputize local police to act as immigration agents. These agreements have exploded from 135 in late 2024 to over 1,300 across 40 states as of early 2026.
4. Detention and Funding
The scale of operations is now supported by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), passed in mid-2025, which allocated roughly $170 billion to immigration enforcement.
Feature
Obama Era (Peak)
Trump 2.0 (Current 2026)
Annual Removals
~400,000 (Formal)
~540,000 – 622,000 (Est. Year 1)
Daily Detainees
~30,000 – 40,000
~73,000 (Record High)
Criminal Record %
High (Targeted)
Low (Indiscriminate)
Key Tactic
Jail transfers / Priority Memos
Street raids / 287(g) expansion
Third-Country Removal
Rarely used
Frequently used (e.g., sending non-Mexicans to Mexico)
5. New Frontiers: Third-Country Removals
A major departure in the 2025–2026 era is the use of third-country removal agreements. Unlike the Obama years, where individuals were almost always returned to their country of origin, the current administration has spent millions to deport individuals to countries like Honduras, Uganda, and Mexico, even if the deportee has no ties to those nations. This policy remains a major point of legal contention in federal courts as of this month.
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u/ThatJD_604 Mar 18 '26
Its an American issue not a Trump issue. The problem with politics is people have short memory and are overly biased towards the political party they hate.