
In a move to strengthen immigration enforcement, President Donald Trump has authorized thousands of federal law enforcement officers to assist in apprehending illegal immigrants. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman signed a directive allowing Justice Department agencies to support immigration operations.
The newly granted authority applies to officers from the U.S. Marshals, Drug Enforcement Administration, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Bureau of Prisons. These agencies, which primarily focus on other federal crimes, will now play a larger role in immigration enforcement efforts.
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 this expansion provides much-needed support to existing immigration officers, citing the failures of previous policies that allowed illegal immigration to surge. She said the administration is committed to using every available resource to fulfill Trump’s campaign promise of large-scale deportations.
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
The additional agents could provide an estimated 80% increase in enforcement capacity, adding more than 31,000 personnel to assist ICE and Border Patrol operations. The directive outlines that these officers will assist in locating, processing and removing individuals in the country unlawfully.
🚨 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
Since taking office, Trump’s administration has already made significant strides in enforcement. In a single day, more than 500 arrests were carried out across several cities, including sanctuary jurisdictions. Officials reported that many of those detained had criminal records linked to serious offenses.
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
Internal Justice Department memos have instructed federal officers to prioritize identifying individuals who may be in the country illegally and to coordinate with immigration officials to expedite deportation proceedings.
🚨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